| Suri Network News |
Summer 2018
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New This Year - an Online Auction to Complement the Annual Symposium Live AuctionThe Suri Network has teamed up with Bidding for Good to create an online auction platform to replace our annual silent auction at the Summer Symposium. The reasons for this are several - first, we want to put suri products out in front of a larger audience, and Bidding for Good has an extensive audience of bidders who like to support non-profits. Second, we want our donors to benefit from that wider exposure! All donors to the auction will have a live link to their farm or other sales site - if someone misses out on your donation, hopefully they'll buy directly from you! Donated items will be featured on the auction website from the time they are donated and can be uploaded, until the close of the auction. You can showcase your unique farm offerings to the bidder community and your fellow breeders for a month or more, all while benefitting your breed association. The success of our auction depends on our members and other supporters of the Suri Network - so please consider donating to the auction, and promoting it to friends and colleagues as well! The auction can be found here: Web optimized:
More information about donating an item can be found here: Auction Donation Form Barker and Steele Award Nominations SoughtMember nominations are being sought for the Barker and Steele awards. Nominations close June 14th, so don't delay! Click on the award title below to be taken to more information on whom to nominate, as well as how. The Jim Barker Suri Network Ambassador Award was established in 2013 to recognize a Suri Network member who exemplifies Jim Barker’s commitment to and enthusiasm toward the Suri alpaca industry. The Judy Steele Suri Network Creativity Award was established in 2017 to recognize a Suri Network member who has shown extraordinary creativity and vision in promoting suri alpacas or utilizing suri fiber. PDC UpdateThe PDC is back with a new chair and looking for new members! You don't have to be a fiber expert to join the committee - you just need a passion for promoting suri and helping your fellow farmers. The PDC is a busy and productive committee that could use your talents - please consider joining! Joy Conwell - Chair 303-570-7493 SuperFleece Alpacas Conifer, Colorado 80433 Jan Heinrich 615-452-7852 Long Hollow Suri Alpacas/New Era Fiber Gallatin, Tennessee Celya Singleton (435) 201-1748 San Rafael Suris Ferron, Utah Michelle Pressler (847) 373-3056 (815) 713-5234 iMpress Alpacas Rockton, Illinois Kristie Smoker - Board Liaison 717-503-6168 Sweet Valley Suris Annville, Pennsylvania |
President's Letter Hello Suri Network Members! Shearing and the spring show season are over, and summer is finally here! We know our members are busy birthing babies, skirting/sorting fleeces and catching up on farm business.
Speaking of farm business, it is membership renewal time. Please be sure to renew your Suri Network membership that was due on June 1 for the fiscal year 2018-2019. Your membership is important for the continued success of our organization. We have been busy planning the 2018 Summer Symposium and All Suri Fleece Show. The Summer Symposium on Aug 3-4, 2018, in Loveland, Colorado, will be the headliner event for the suri alpaca industry this year. With our theme of “The Science of Suris,” we are bringing in world renowned speakers on topics ranging from genetics, nutrition, diseases, fiber analysis and marketing your farm business. We are also hosting the largest Suri fleece show in the country, judged on Aug 1-2 to coincide with the Symposium, so participants can see and feel the best Suri fleeces in the industry. The Board of Trustees wants to thank you for your financial and/or volunteer support of the Suri Network. We ask that you consider being a sponsor of the Summer Symposium or Fleece Show. Your sponsorships go directly to subsidizing the costs of these events, which we could not afford to do without that support. It is a great marketing tool for your farm targeted specifically to Suri breeders across the US, providing great focus for your marketing dollars. You can sign up for sponsorships on the registration pages for the Symposium or the Fleece Show. If you need assistance, please contact Cindy Grigg at office@surinetwork.org. Suri Network will be soon announcing the candidates for the 2018 Board of Trustees upcoming election. The nominating committee made up of Suri Network members and some board members have worked hard to provide a high-quality candidate slate for your consideration. We appreciate your support and participation in Suri Network, as a breed association together, we can advance our mission to ensure the preservation and advancement of the Suri breed. Your involvement, input and feedback are critical to the ongoing success of our industry. Warmest regards, Sue King President Suri Network
2018 Symposium Update The 2018 Suri Network Symposium is back in Loveland, CO this August 3rd and 4th! We are returning to a two day, Friday and Saturday format, with additional workshops on Thursday. For a small fee, you can learn drop spindle from Gabrielle Menn or weaving with suri from Dan Corley. Our show super, Judy Schroeder, has also offered to teach crochet for free to anyone interested during the Symposium, once the fleece judging has been completed. Learn more about the workshops here. The fleece show looks to be one of the best in the world again, with tremendous competition. The Spin-off competition closes today, June 12, and you must enter spin off to be eligible to compete in the Cottage Fleece competition. Both 2017 and 2018 fleeces are eligible to entered in Spin-off and Cottage, and Cottage entries will count towards the Breeders Cups, new awards first being offered this year. To learn more about Spin-off or Cottage, click here. As mentioned, the Suri Network is offering three new, prestigious Breeder's Cups this year. The three levels are Emerald - Small Entry, Sapphire - Medium Entry and Diamond - Large Entry. The August Symposium will again have a Fiber Arts competition and now’s the time to begin planning and creating your entry! We accept entries in all categories described in the AOA Showbook, as long as they contain at least 50% suri fiber (Chapter 24, Section 3). We have some tremendous speakers lined up this year, including top veterinarians Drs. Christopher Cebra, Robert Van Saun, Ahmed Tibary, Ruthanne McCaslin and Signe Balch, speaking on topics from reproduction to nutrition. If you own this book - come listen to more than half the authors!
Mike deSorbo will speak on the science of marketing your business, while Amanda VandenBosch, Cheryl Gehly and Gabrielle Menn will get hands on with fiber - how to assess it, how to use it, and how to profit from it. You can find the complete Symposium schedule here. |
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Breeders will automatically be entered into categories based on the number of entries in that category. The number of entries that define each division will be determined after the close of the fleece show registration. Also new this year, the fleece show will begin judging fleeces on Wednesday, August 1, prior to the start of the Symposium. All fleeces will need to be mailed in this year (or transferred at no cost from the National Fleece Show!), but will be available for pick up at the end of the Symposium. 