ROGER, A LOVE STORY
by
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The story really begins with Buck. He was a gentle, laid back collie labrador mix, named for Buck in The Call of the Wild. We were devoted to him... But in the fall of 1990, Buck was diagnosed with liver cancer and died shortly thereafter. I was inconsolable. Every time I saw a dog that resembled Buck at all, I burst into tears. Time eased the pain, but I continued to miss him. Then in February of 1991, we watched the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show on television, and we were enchanted with the little Norwich terrier. We got out the AKC book and read about the breed, and they sounded like perfect pets. But I wasn't ready to have my heart broken again, and I pretty much put the idea of another dog aside.
My birthday is in August, and Joe decided to get me a Norwich for my birthday. A month or so in advance, he started looking in the newspaper, but found no listings for Norwich terriers.... Finally, he came upon a dog book that had all the breeds and breeders listed... He finally got in touch with Glenn Wills, of Shelbyville, KY, a renowned dog breeder and owner of champion Norwich terriers. After much discussion, Mr. Wills agreed to let Joe have his male pup who would be ten weeks old on my birthday. They decided that Mr. Wills would put the pup on Delta Dash in Lexington, and we would pick him up at the Daytona airport. Mr. Wills had been calling the pup Roger after his vet, but he assured us that we could call him anything we wanted.
About a week before Roger was to arrive, Joe announced that he had a bigwig with one of the insurance companies coming to Daytona on Friday of the next week for an upcoming trial. Joe hadn't talked to the fellow at all, just to the people who handled his schedule. He gave me the appointed arrival time, and said all he knew about our guest was that his name was Roger Wills, and that he was short with brown hair....
That Friday night, we headed out to the airport in Daytona Beach. Joe had a little conversation with the folks at Delta who loved the whole scheme. They began paging: "Mr. Roger Wills, your party is here to meet you." Meanwhile, I stood at the gate, pointing out every man who was short with brown hair and traveling alone to Joe, thinking that each might be Mr. Wills.
Finally, a Delta official came over to us and announced that he had our party waiting for us. We followed him in to the lost luggage room where he set a dog carrier on the desk. Joe looked inside and said, "Short with brown hair; that must be Roger Wills." And so it began.
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About the Book
When Roger, a 13 pound, 15 1/2 year old Norwich terrier died, his owners, Marjie and Joe Eubank, were devastated. Marjie turned to writing to work through her grief. What began as therapy quickly became a labor of love. Reliving the happy times was bittersweet, but, ultimately, the pure joy of life with Roger became the winner in this little story.
About the Author
Marjie Eubank is a native Floridian who, for almost her entire life, has enjoyed having a dog in her family. When she hasn't been tending to her dogs, she has managed to get a BA from Duke University and an MS from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. For twenty-five years she has been a practicing CPA in the State of Florida.
Marjie lives in Daytona Beach, FL with her husband Joe. They are blessed with five children and eleven grandchildren. Their current furry family members are Maggie and Buster, terriers, of course.