Club Happenings
It’s that time of
year again when the spring show season has started as well as time
to update the membership of WCFG activities. The Second Annual
Camarillo Classic is scheduled for April 24-25, 2004 at the new
home of Tammy and Allen Bush. A cancellation by one of the
previously scheduled judges has resulted in a new lineup. Joe
Lugo will be sorting the Flemish for the Youth and Open Shows on
Saturday. Allen Barr will be returning this year to judge our
Flemish for the Open show on Sunday. Allen Barr was a great hit
with all the exhibitors last year.
Actions by the
Board:
At the urging of
several Club members, the WCFG Board has authored and submitted a
proposal to host the 2005 National Flemish Show. The bid, if
accepted, will bring the NFFGRB National Show to the west coast
for the first time. The show will be held the same weekend as the
Third Annual Camarillo Classic in April/May 2005. With the recent
action of the NFFGRB membership, the National Flemish Show is a
double sweepstake point event. Further information will be
provided after the NFFGRB Board makes its final decision.
2004 Membership Dues:
The WCFG Board has decided to waive 2004 membership dues for all
2003 current members. The Club’s finances are in excellent shape
and the Board felt that this would be a great way to show
appreciation for all the fine work done by members in support of
WCFG during 2003.
President’s
Message
by Jeff Mullinax 
As most of you
know, it has been an unusual year for our rabbitry. We found out
approximately 8 weeks before the National Convention in Wichita
that we were losing the use of the barn where we had been keeping
our Flemish. We quickly made arrangements to sell our entire herd
of Flemish by the end of the Convention. As strange as it may
seem, we now only have two Flemish which we keep in the backyard
as pets.
The transition has
been interesting. We still have a great bunch of friends in the
rabbit world, but I can’t say I miss scooping poop every weekend.
Since we no longer have breeding stock, we have shut down our
website as well as the e-mail addresses associated with
flemishgiants.com. The WCFG website has been moved to a new
address at
http://www.nffgrb.com/wcfg.htm
and our e-mail address is jeff59@pacbell.net.
I feel very
strongly that the club officers should be actively showing rabbits
to keep abreast of current events and needs of our members, so
Anne and I will be resigning our posts in the club. A new
president and secretary will need to be elected to fill our
positions.
It has been an
honor and pleasure to serve as President. The club has surpassed
all our early expectations and I offer my support to the new
President of WCFG.
I look forward to
seeing everyone in Camarillo.
Jeff
2nd
Annual Camarillo Classic
Tammy & Allen Bush’s Home & Rabbitry
April 24 & 25, 2004
Hi
Everyone,
We would like to
invite you to the 2nd Annual Camarillo Classic. We are going to
have another two day picnic show at our new home. We moved a mile
away to a much better place for a rabbit show. We have a lot more
room and it is very quiet and peaceful. We have two excellent
judges. Joe Lugo and Allen Barr will do the sorting of the
Flemish. We will also have great food and a number of rabbits for
sale or trade. We are very excited to have the opportunity to
host these outstanding shows again this year. The 1st
WCFG Camarillo show was a huge success and we are hoping this one
will also be a wonderful weekend of Flemish and fun. We would
like to see as many of you as possible. We are planning to have a
large entry. More details on food, directions, and accommodations
for the show will follow on the website and in future newsletters
from both the West Coast Club and the NFFGRB. Team Mullinax and
Team Machado will once again be helping us plan and run these
shows. They will be staying with us during the weekend.
Unfortunately, we will not be able to accommodate anyone else this
time. Please make arrangements to stay at one of the excellent
hotels/motels located very close to our home. We would like to
congratulate Jeff & Anne on an excellent convention. Their
animals were magnificent again this year. Please call or E-mail
them with your congratulations.
Good
Luck in all your Flemish Endeavors.
Allen and Tammy
Bush
10216 Churchman
Lane
Camarillo, CA
93012
(805) 491-2029
bushflemish@direcway.com
Annual
Director’s Report
by Chris Fleming
This has been an
exciting year for my rabbitry. In May 2002 I was honored by being
selected to represent the new West Coast Flemish Giant as a
director. WCFG has been a good addition to the Flemish community.
The people I have met this year have been encouraging, helpful, and
educational.
I started with my
first “Giants” about 5 years ago. The first couple of years, I
struggled with my stock and the lack of competition here in Central
California. This has been the most successful couple of years in
rabbits. I started 2003 with four of the seven varieties. I now
have all seven varieties in my rabbitry.
With the help of the
Mullinax’s and the Bush’s, my stock has improved. So has the
competition. At the 2003 Tulare show we had 27 Flemish with 6
exhibitors. This compares to 11 Flemish with 2 exhibitors at the
same show the previous year. The Great Western Show in the Spring
2003 had 32 Flemish and 5 exhibitors compared to 9 Flemish and 2
exhibitors the previous year. The number of Youth breeding and
showing Flemish Giants is growing in Central California. While no
one likes to lose, it’s not so bad when you are beaten by a rabbit
that you bred. This has happened to me a couple of times over the
past year.
On the regional
level, I have attended shows at Red Bluff, Bakersfield, Watsonville,
Monterey, Santa Rosa, Fresno, and Stockton. I also was able to
attend the 2002 ARBA National Convention in Peoria, Illinois. It
was a great trip, especially getting to drive across country. But
it was a little embarrassing to enter two junior bucks as junior
does. While I was not able to attend the 2003 Convention in
Wichita, my Giants were there thanks to my dad. I needed to stay
home and not miss school as it is my senior year. I’m not sure how
many of us will be able to make the trip to Rhode Island in 2004.
In closing, I would
like to thank Jeff & Anne and Allen & Tammy for a great couple of
years. The website is awesome and the leadership has this new club
and made it the best in just a couple of years.
Secretary’s Message
By Anne Mullinax
As Jeff mentioned in
his message, what a difference a year makes! It’s hard to believe
that a year has passed since the first Camarillo Classic. What a
great time we all had that weekend!
I want to take this
opportunity to thank the wonderful people who make up WCFG. The
WCFG specialty shows that I’ve attended and especially our show last
April were examples of how rabbit clubs can (and should) work.
Everyone pitched in and helped without being asked. There was
terrific competition on the table and most importantly… everyone had
fun!
It has truly been a
pleasure and an honor to serve as your Secretary for the past two
years. Together we have built a club that strives to meet our
objectives – to promote and encourage the breeding and showing of
Flemish Giants in western North America and assist each other in the
process.
See you in
Camarillo!
It’s Election Time!
As called for in the Constitution of WCFG, an election for the
offices of Vice President and Treasurer will be held in even
numbered years. Due to resignations, the offices of President and
Secretary are also up for election.
The members currently in these positions are:
President: Jeff Mullinax
Vice President: John Machado
Treasurer: Linda Wagner
Secretary: Anne Mullinax
The Constitution also states that 3 of the club’s 6 Directors will
be elected each year. The Director positions currently held by
Tammy Bush, Chris Fleming, and Shere Machado are up for election as
they have held these positions for the past two years. In addition,
the Director position held by James O’Connor is also up for election
as James has moved out of the region covered by the charter of
WCFG.
Nominations for the positions of President, Vice President,
Treasurer, Secretary and the 4 Directors will be accepted until
March 3rd.
Please forward your nominations to:
Anne Mullinax, WCFG
Secretary
4985 Parkhurst Drive
Santa Rosa, CA 95409
(707) 539-4778 evenings
or
jeff59@pacbell.net
Those members nominated will be contacted by the WCFG Secretary.
Ballots will be mailed March 15th and the results will be announced
at the annual meeting of WCFG in
Camarillo on April 24th.
2nd
Annual Camarillo Classic
April 24 – 25, 2004
Plans are being
finalized for the Second Annual Camarillo Classic, April 24-25,
2004. We hope to again have a weekend filled with fun and friendly
competition.
The schedule for the
weekend is similar to last year. Exhibitors can start checking in
at 8 a.m. on Saturday morning and the Youth Specialty Show will
start at 9 a.m. The Open Specialty Show will follow. A lunch break
will be taken at noon. We are very happy to have Joe Lugo joining
us for the Saturday shows.
A barbeque dinner and
meeting of West Coast Flemish Giants will be held on Saturday
evening. The results of the election will be announced at the
meeting.
A second Open
Specialty Show will be held on Sunday, starting at 9 a.m. Allen
Barr is returning to do the sorting on Sunday.
Entry fees are $3.00
for any one show, $5.00 for any two shows, and Fur is $1.00 per
show. Entries must be postmarked by Friday, April 16th
or received via email by Wednesday, April 21st.
Shere Machado has
generously offered to host our raffle table. Thank you, Shere!
Back by popular
demand – the WCFG Meal Ticket! For a mere $15, take advantage of a
light breakfast on Saturday and Sunday, lunch on Saturday, and a
terrific barbeque dinner on Saturday night. It’s safe to say that
exhibitors really enjoyed this convenience last year.
An entry form as well
as a location map for the show has been included for your use.
Please contact Anne
Mullinax at
jeff59@pacbell.net or (707) 539-4778 if you have any additional
questions.
