On May 20, 2017 over 100 Golden Retrievers from across New England and beyond gathered at Dog Mountain in St. Johnsbury, Vermont with a purpose; to support the critical research of the Morris Foundation Golden Retriever Lifetime Study, to honor the important mission of Yankee Golden Retriever Rescue, to remember special Golden angels and to celebrate what it means to be a Golden Retriever!  Every shade of Golden was there from the lightest cream to the darkest red, and ages ranged from the youngest attendees at 3 months old to the oldest dog there, Sprocket, at 15 years old!  They came from as far away as Pennsylvania to as close as right down the road in St. Johnsbury, and every state in New England was proudly represented.  In short, the New England Golden Jubilee was pure Golden bliss!

From the moment we arrived, Asa and I were in awe of this magical place – wide open fields, ponds, hiking trails, tennis balls, and Golden Retrievers as far as our eyes could see!  Dog Mountain is the most dog friendly place on earth!  I have to be honest, it was a bit overwhelming.  Where to begin?  We were immediately welcomed by a gaggle of Goldens, and instantly we were the best of friends running off-leash as they showed us all around this magical dog paradise.  From the Stephen Huneck Gallery to the memorials in Dog Chapel, no place was off limits to us!  We were free to do what we wanted!  Ok, so Mom and Dad were always nearby keeping a watchful eye on us.  They are after all self-proclaimed “helicopter dog parents,” and with good reason.  It wasn’t long after we arrived that Asa made our presence known by stealing a squeaky toy from the Kibble Cup Auction.  Seriously, leave it to Asa to break the one rule of what we were NOT suppose to do!  But no one got mad!  They laughed as Mom desperately tried to retrieve Asa’s prized possession, and reassured her that Asa would not be reprimanded for his mischief.  Thoroughly embarrassed though, after that Mom and Dad did take turns letting us off-leash, so that they could keep a better eye on Asa!

The first couple of hours were dedicated to meeting all the wonderfully goofy Goldens that were there, while letting off some steam from our excitement.  I met Gracie who stumbled upon the New England Golden Jubilee purely by accident.  She came with her Mom to pay tribute to a beloved older sibling who crossed Rainbow Bridge.  I also met Maxwell, who despite being 14 years old, was as happy as a puppy watching all the fun going on around him.  In fact, I met so many dogs, I can’t possibly remember all their names!  There was a puppy training to be a therapy dog, and many dogs who were already working hard as therapy dogs but enjoying their day off on the mountain.  Duke and Daisy recognized us from the hotel the night before, and Cody told me he’d be staying there with his Dad that evening.  We even met members of our extended family, Aubrey, Tiah and Dublin!  However, the best dog we met that day was Asa’s biological father, Daddy Spenser!

I have to be honest though, Asa was more interested in the tennis ball Daddy Spenser was holding than actually meeting his Dad.  I guess the apple…or in this case tennis ball…doesn’t fall far from the old tree!  For you see Asa was on a mission to play with every tennis ball there!  To achieve this goal, once again Asa got into a bit of mischief.  He managed to find inside Dog Chapel a box of tennis balls intended for an epic tennis ball toss later on in the day.  Asa of course couldn’t resist taking one!  But once again, he was immediately forgiven!  The grandson of the organizers told him it was ok, and even played fetch with Asa.  Soon other dogs were joining in on the fun, as they chased after the tennis ball.  From that moment forward, it was rare that Asa didn’t have a tennis ball in his mouth.  I, on the other paw, wanted to challenge myself.  So for the first time tried doing an agility course!  In case you’ve never tried it, that tunnel is a lot less scary than it looks!

Then it came time to get down to business with the group photos.  There was a photo of the Heroes, who are participating in the Morris Foundation Golden Retriever Lifetime Study.  There were photos of the dogs who are battling cancer with true fighting spirit and grace.  The therapy dogs stole the show with their goofy antics, including doing barrel rolls down the hill rather than pose.  Followed by the wise dignity of the 10 and older Goldens.  Even Asa got to be in a photo for Golden Retrievers age 2 and under!  Ok, I admit it, I got jealous.  I tried to force my way into that group and barked while Asa and Dad went off to pose.  I refused to quiet down until Mom took a picture of me photobombing the group!  There was also a group photo of all 100 Goldens and their 120 humans!  But with that many Golden Retrievers in attendance, let’s just say that photo was a giant free for all, especially when one Golden spotted a pond at the bottom of the hill and took off running with several other Goldens in hot pursuit.  Once again though, the crowd roared with laughter!

Following the photos we paid tribute to the dearly departed Goldens who have crossed Rainbow Bridge in the past year.  Then they handed out the Tears of Joy award as a way to honor a Golden Retriever whose success with life’s struggles has been reason for tears of joy.  This year’s recipient was a brave young Golden who was diagnosed with cancer.  Despite her illness, she traveled the farthest all the way from Pennsylvania to be there that day, and enjoyed every minute!  There even was a blessing of the animals.  Following the ceremony, we watched last year’s Tears of Joy recipient, Bowie and his Mom perform to the song “Better Place,” by Rachel Platten.  Bowie is a two year hemangio sarcoma cancer survivor, and this was his retirement dance.  There wasn’t a dry eye in that field when their beautiful performance was over.  Bowie’s siblings also danced for us too!

Then it was time for the moment we all were waiting for – the epic 100 tennis ball toss into the pond!!!  We could feel the anticipation building as we all hiked up to the pond.  Then at the count of three the humans threw the balls into the pond as we all jumped in after them!  It was epic!  Asa was on tennis ball overload!  He’s never seen so many tennis balls at once, and couldn’t decide which direction to swim!  So Asa swam in every direction happily dunking for tennis balls.  Then he would spot another ball and swim to retrieve that next while dropping the first ball back in the water.  I took a more systematic approach by retrieving the balls in the water and safely putting them on the embankment.  Not to brag, but I achieved my personal best and retrieved TWO tennis balls at once!  As the other dogs slowly made their way out of the pond, it became painfully obvious that Asa was not going to leave the water on his own.  I anxiously watched from the shore of the pond as Dad called to Asa.  Reluctantly, after several more laps around the pond, Asa came.  But while trying to leash him up, Asa almost dragged Dad into the water!  Mom caught a really funny photo of that moment, but Dad wouldn’t let me share it here.  Following the epic tennis ball toss, we dried off by playing fetch in the field.

During a quiet moment, we went to Dog Chapel to pay tribute to my dear brother, Lemmy.  Mom and Dad added his name to the wall with a special message of love.  Dog Chapel is truly a special place, with memorials to thousands of dogs and other pets.  Mom paused to say a prayer, not only for Lemmy but for all our fur family and friends who are no longer with us but are now running free over Rainbow Bridge.  Even Asa stopped obsessing over tennis balls long enough to read some of the tributes.

Then it was time to eat!  As Mom and Dad enjoyed their hamburgers, which by the way they didn’t share with us, stupid diet…I happily looked around at all the Goldens.  In every direction there were happy smiles, wagging tails and cherished Golden moments between the dogs and their humans.  The New England Golden Jubilee was truly a special day for everyone who attended.  Finally it was time for the moment Asa was waiting for since we arrived, announcing the winners of the Kibble Cup Auction to support Yankee Golden Retriever Rescue!  Asa perked right up as each winning raffle number was called, and longingly watched as someone walked away with his coveted prize.  Then it happened.  Another first for us.  Asa won a prize in the Kibble Cup Auction!  We’ve never won anything before!  Asa was over the moon with excitement!  We won a squeaky toy and a dog pillow, as well as treats and a few other Golden themed items.

After the auction, the day was winding down.  Mom went into the Stephen Huneck Gallery to do a bit of shopping.  I followed her in, but she was so engrossed in the brightly colored artwork that she didn’t even notice me!  I browsed the shop, then I heard Dad whistling, so went back outside assuming Asa had ran off with another raffle prize.  Thankfully, he didn’t.  The day concluded with a group hike of Dog Mountain, but we decided to head back to our hotel instead.  We were all exhausted, and knew we’d be returning the next day to hike the trails at Dog Mountain.  Besides, there were still more adventures to be had at the hotel!

Thank you Sandy and Peter Lok for organizing the 3rd Annual New England Golden Jubilee!  We look forward to making this a family tradition!  Mom’s photos don’t even begin to capture how extraordinary our day was, so for more amazing pictures, including a video of Bowie’s special dance, please visit New England Golden Jubilee.