Murrysville golf course will host fundraiser for Great Pyrenees club
Janice Trzeciak of Penn Hills was only planning to foster Jasmine, a big, adorable Great Pyrenees dog, until she could find the animal a permanent home.
But one day when Trzeciak went to meet with a potential “forever family,” she discovered that she just wasn’t ready to say goodbye.
Jasmine has been with her ever since, and now has another Pyrenees pal, Zeus.
Trzeciak is a member of the Great Pyrenees Club of Western Pennsylvania Rescue. The club has been in existence for more than 60 years, Trzeciak said, and members rescue, rehabilitate and re-home Great Pyrenees dogs given up for adoption or rescued from local shelters.
The club will host a Sept. 29 golf fundraiser at Rolling Fields Golf Club in Murrysville.
“This is the first time for this big of an event,” said Trzeciak.
Great Pyrenees were originally bred as working dogs in the Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain, guarding sheep from predators on the snowy mountainsides.
The breed came to America in 1931, beginning with a breeder in Massachusetts.
“They bark a lot, and they can be a little stubborn,” Trzeciak said. “They’re used to working on their own.”
Below, Trzeciak tells the story of fostering, and eventually adopting, Jasmine last year.
The club is always seeking additional foster homes. Trzeciak said that despite their size, their surroundings don’t have to match.
“I don’t have a big house, and I have two other dogs,” she said. “They’re pretty laid-back.”
The golf tournament will start at 1 p.m., with registration opening at noon. The cost is $80 per golfer and includes a cart, hot dog, beer and water, a golfer “goodie bag” and dinner.
There will be contests for closest-to-the-pin and longest drive, along with a silent auction and raffle drawings.
All proceeds will benefit the club.
“We have 22 dogs in rescue right now,” Trzeciak said.
For more, see SWPAPYR.org.
Patrick Varine is a TribLive reporter covering Delmont, Export and Murrysville. He is a Western Pennsylvania native and joined the Trib in 2010 after working as a reporter and editor with the former Dover Post Co. in Delaware. He can be reached at pvarine@triblive.com.
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