Hall of Fame and Nominations
The American Spaniel Club first inducted members into its Hall of Fame in 1995 when current members nominated candidates to the Hall of Fame in four different categories. In 1999, those categories were simplified to just two: Service to the Organization and Contribution to the Breed. The Hall of Fame is open to any former or current member in good standing of the American Spaniel Club who it is felt has made a significant contribution to the American Spaniel Club organization itself or to the Cocker Spaniel breed.
Each year one new inductee can be elected to the Hall of Fame for Service to the Organization and one for Contribution to the Breed. Consideration for new inductees is granted on an annual basis, although new inductees are not necessarily granted annually.
By November 1 of each year the Archival Committee Chairperson will form a Hall of Fame (HOF) Committee and will be the chair of that committee. All past ASC Presidents are eligible and invited to participate on the HOF committee. In the case of a Hall of Fame nominee being a part of the voting process, he/she will not be asked to participate. The Committee is disbanded again after the Annual Meeting in January and then reformed the following October.
Nominations
Nominations are intended for people and not organizations or kennels. Nominations can be made for an individual or couple as appropriate. Significant contribution is defined as one that is important and had profound impact in shaping the breed or the club as it is known today. Significant contributions go beyond the bounds of normal volunteerism, standards of ethics or animal husbandry and successful breeding programs. It is the purpose of the Hall of Fame to capture for succeeding generations the memory of the extraordinary and not the ordinary.
Nominations are made annually and unless otherwise noted, close on October 31 for that year. They come from two sources:
• Membership. ASC members may make nominations through a Petition for Consideration. The Petition is simply typed or written legibly on standard paper, and should state in sufficient detail the name of the individual and their significant contribution(s). The Petition must be sent to one of the three ASC Archival Committee members.
• The ASC Archival Committee, in the course of their archival and historical duties, may discover and offer nominees for consideration.
The Archival Chair, in the role of Chair of the Hall of Fame Committee, will gather all nominations and submit them to each member of the Committee. The Archival Committee members can make recommendations on the submitted list of candidates. The HOF Committee with a simple approving majority vote makes the final decision. In case of a tie for any candidate, the three members of the Archival Committee will vote to break the tie. Any ASC Hall of Fame candidates, so nominated and selected for induction are announced at the American Spaniel Club Annual Meeting.
Mary & Norman Barnes - 2015
Mary and Norman Barnes, Liz Bar
Mary Barnes bred and showed cocker spaniels from the late 1940’s until she whelped her last litter in the early 1990’s. She was primarily known for her black cockers and especially her beautiful black bitches but she also finished ASCOBs and parti-colors.
Probably her two most famous cockers were CH Liz-Bar Magic of Music, “Bass,” and Ch Liz-Bar Chances Are, “Esmeralda.” Bass was a top winning black cocker for the decade of the 70’s. He was a multiple Best in Show dog, winning the Black Variety twice at ASC and going Best in Show at Santa Barbara Kennel club over 2000 dogs. Esmeralda was also a Best in Show winner. Only bred once, Esmeralda produced two champion get (CH Liz-Bar Gambler and Ch Liz-Bar Happen). Mary finished over 75 dogs under the Liz-Bar prefix. Ch Liz-Bar Magician, “Buddy” was her top producer. She also showed and finished dogs for many other cocker fanciers in the southeast. To name a few, these include: Ann Smith-Martin, Terry Corn, Pat Karney, Diane Hernandez, Nancy Hunter, Karen Phiel, and Susan Roman.
Mary and her husband, Norman were very active in ASC. Both served as President of the Cocker Spaniel Specialty Club of Georgia (CSSCG) for multiple terms of office. Additionally, Mary was the CSSCG treasurer for many years. Norman also served as President of The Combined Specialty Clubs of Georgia. Mary is a life member of ASC, CSSCG, and Atlanta Kennel Club.
In addition to breeding, training and showing her beloved black cockers; Mary was a mentor to many cocker newcomers and exhibitors. She would work for hours teaching proper show grooming and handling to us. Mary shared her knowledge with many others and asked for only one thing of us; that we, in turn, share the knowledge and love of cockers with other newcomers.
Mary N. Barnes was 96 on December 19, 2014. It is fitting if that we, the ASC membership, recognize Mary and Norman Barnes and their contributions to the breed by adding their names to the ASC Hall of Fame.
Charles Born - 2015
Charles P. Born, Sugarbrook
Charles (Charlie) Born’s life with Cocker Spaniels spans over 50 years. His involvement began in 1964 when he partnered with his aunt and mentor, the renowned Marguerite Manhart. Together they bred and showed Cockers with the Sugarbrook prefix. Another early influence was Bain Cobb who handled Mrs. Manhart’s dogs and consulted on her breeding program and Ruth Benhoff of Artru fame. Sugarbrook produced top winning show Cockers until 1991 when six years after Mrs. Manhart’s death and Charlie’s job demands and travel made it too difficult to manage and care for a show kennel.
Early on Mrs. Manhart cultivated her own preference for blacks and buffs in her nephew, and together they bred more than 40 solid champions with many of them owner-handled by Charlie. From 1945 to 1991 Sugarbrook dogs brought home top prizes from the show ring including Best in Show, Best of Breed, ASC Best of Variety and a Futurity winner. Though career demands made it necessary for Charlie to end his breeding program, his dedication and admiration for the breed and his commitment to the American Spaniel Club continues.
Charlie is a Life Member of the Keystone Cocker Spaniel Club and worked in various capacities for the club including club president and show chair for more than 10 years. Charlie served on the American Spaniel Club Board for 13 years – Zone 1 for four years, and for six years as 1st and 2nd ASC VP or Director at Large and three years as President. He also served on many committees including Futurity, By-Laws, Hall of Fame, Ethics and Web. He is a valuable team player, mentor and calm mediator in the face of multiple challenges that face national ASC administrators, and was even the “voice” of Samuel Spaniel on the ASC website for many years tactfully fielding questions from the general public.
While President Charlie lead the effort to define dangers of Merle in our breed and worked with the AKC to have them approve our Z registration for merles. When undocked tails became an issue he led the effort to clarify our standard and define our support of docked tails in cockers. His reports on that effort are still available on the ASC website. He was a founding member of the ASC Foundation and has served on the Board in various capacities – currently as the Communications Chair.
Charlie is generous with his time and has shared his expertise with others by judging Cocker specialty sweepstakes throughout the U.S., and has been selected by ASC members to judge the ASC Futurity twice. He contributed to breed judges teaching seminars and breeder education programs. Charlie’s commitment to the advancement and protection of the Cocker Spaniel and the American Spaniel Club qualify him as an outstanding candidate for the American Spaniel Club Hall of Fame for Contributions to the Organization.