Thank you for purchasing this special calendar to benefit our friends at the Lawrence Humane Society. Working on this project was an absolute blast because while I often get to see the intense competitors our coaches are on the sidelines, it’s rare to get a glimpse of the softer side that only family – and in this case, the 4-legged kind of family – can bring out in them. Every Jayhawk featured in these pages is bonded by their love of Kansas Athletics and their love of dogs, many of which are rescues like the ones we’re trying to support through the sales of this calendar. In addition to thanking Travis Goff and all of our outstanding coaches who enthusiastically participated, I want to express my great appreciation for the time and talents poured into this by Lawrence Humane staff: Shannon Wells, Sydney Martin, and Elina Alterman. Who knew that on top of being such a tremendous Executive Director at our local animal shelter, Shannon is also a gifted photographer? Sydney’s graphic design talents are All-American caliber and, of course, Elina is the “glue-gal” that brought this all together and first approached me, trying to come up with a fun, new idea to raise funds for the shelter.
Additionally, Elina was kind enough to volunteer her sweet dog, Hootie – arguably the biggest local celebrity in the whole calendar – to pose with Coach Self for the final month. Bill and Cindy have long been dog lovers, but no longer have a pup at home as their focus has shifted to their grandchildren. So, we needed a special dog to pose with KU’s winningest coach of alltime and Hootie gladly accepted the chance to represent all the shelter dogs, as he himself is quite the Lawrence Humane success story. Hootie is a reminder of all the unconditional love, loyal companionship, and lifelong memories that adopting a dog can bring. Sadly, this photo shoot with the Hall of Fame Head Coach was Hootie’s last big excursion as he was finishing his fight with cancer and crossed the Rainbow Bridge a week later. Hootie spent one of his last happy days with us so that we’d have TWO Hall of Famers in the shot, and for that we dedicate this calendar to him in loving memory of one of Lawrence Humane’s best alumni ever.
Thank you for supporting one of my favorite local charities. I hope each time you turn the page to a new month, you think about all those wonderful pups at the shelter waiting for a fur-ever home. Your contributions help Lawrence Humane meet the needs of those dogs (and cats) and we are immensely grateful for that! Enjoy the calendar and hang on to this one - I have a feeling 2025 is going to be a memorable year, with plenty to cheer (and bark) about. Rock Chalk!
