These are the people and dogs mentioned in this memorial:
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| BJ was my first dog, a mixed breed. She's Bailey's daughter, the result of a fling he had with a terrier (she looks like her mother). She was eleven years old at the time of Missy's death -- only a year older than Missy, but showed her age more than Missy did, possibly due to her failing eyesight. (Missy remained young at heart right up to the end.) |  |
 | Barkley is a dog I took in when no one else could look after him. He's a mixed breed, part doberman and part who-knows-what. He's a big, clumsy dufus of a dog who's a lot of fun! |
| Princess Sunni Rainbow has a rarefied name, but in person she's just a little bundle of energy and beagle-ness Missy's teacher in the beginning, the two were inseparable lizard hunting companions. |  |
 | Bailey is Judi's eldest beagle -- 14 at the time of Missy's death. He was unusually devoted to Missy (even though she had been spayed <g>). |
| I don't have any pictures of Missy's original people, Joyce and Guy. I never met them, and everything I know about them is second-hand. But I'm told that Joyce dearly loved Missy, and when a person loves a dog, and a dog loves a person, they complete each other and become a whole. |
 | I'm a software developer and story writer. At the time of Missy's death, I'd finished a story with beagle characters called The First Dog on the Moon, and was working on another called The Princess and the Alien Abductors. |
| Judi is strong when strength is required, makes the right call when a right call is essential, cries when crying is appropriate, and is a soft touch when a dog really needs a piece of cheese. What better definition of the word "human" could a dog ask for? |  |
 | Judi's mother, Lynn, is a "do something" kind of person, and when her friends Joyce and Guy died what she did was find a home for their orphaned beagle. That's how Missy came into my life. If it was destiny, Lynn was the fulcrum of destiny. |
| Kyle (17 at the time of Missy's death) is your typical teenager: Rebellious, arrogant, angry -- a handful for parents. But he showed his true colors when it came to Missy, especially at the end. His colors were compassion and humanity. |  |
 | Scooter (James) was starting his own business (Jim's Complete Lawn and Tree) and didn't play a big role in Missy's life, but at the end, in her final hour, he brought her those three pepperonis that meant so much to her, and for that I thank him. He stayed with us to the end. |
| Missy's veterinarian, Dr. Joiner, is competent and compassionate. I think he took a personal interest in Missy as her battle with cancer progressed. He called her his "poster dog" while the chemotherapy was working. (And a dog never left his examination room without her toenails being properly trimmed <g>.) |  |
 | My sister Gloria was in the right place at the perfect time, to bring a compassionate end to Missy's life, and for that I am grateful. |
| As I look back on this memorial, I find that Randy hasn't been mentioned. But he was a dear friend of Missy. When I was away, he looked after her (and worried about her). On her last day, he stood by us through it all, and he was the one who dug her grave (not an easy task). Then, after we laid her down, he filled in the grave, until finally he was overcome by tears and had to have help to finish the job. Thank you! |  |