05/31/2018
THE FINAL 200-PAGE KEEPSAKE ISSUE of The Ridgeback Register Magazine is in the mail!!
A Final Farewell …
The passing of years have brought many changes in my life, but none more challenging then what lies ahead: My beloved sister and only sibling continues to battle a terminal illness; my husband retired after 25 years of service as a Police Officer; and the youngest of my three children enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. All of these things gave me great clarity about where I believed I am needed most.
After careful and thoughtful consideration, I decided that it was time to cease publishing The Ridgeback Register magazine. This final issue is a celebration of an incredible journey that has lasted over two decades. I am thankful to all my friends and long-time supporters who are celebrating with me by being a part of this 200-page keepsake issue.
When the announcement was made last year, so many people came out with words of encouragement and wishing to support the final issue. A few, even asked about purchasing the magazine. While that would have been the financially prudent thing to do, I simply could not.
I saw my publication in the same light as a breeder does to their kennel. I had a vision and I did my best to stay true to it. I put my heart and soul into every piece of it … fine tuning, following standards and striving to better each issue produced. There were highs, there were lows and then there were very lows. When times were tough, I could have quit. I did not. I stuck it out and with generations of hard work, created a pedigree that none could ever replicate. To let someone buy it and expect that my vision would continue is foolish. So instead, I chose to close the doors and let the legacy of the publication’s quality be remembered forever.
Shortly after, it was time to select the cover. How best could I represent what this magazine has meant to me? What Ridgeback, if any, should be on the very last cover? Then it came to me. Select a Ridgeback using a favored quote from the standard – “the perfect balance between power and elegance.” It does, after all, also represent the philosophy behind the magazine’s success. I am honored to have Pearl (MBISS GCHG Juba Lee’s Island Girl, JC, CGC), a beautiful bitch on the last cover.
Rest assured, however, I am not disappearing from the breed. I am simply downsizing in an effort to dedicate more time to family and my freelance business. I will continue to stay involved in this beloved breed and look forward to serving as a Board Member of the Rhodesian Ridgeback Club of America. I am sure I will see many of you at shows and you can count on me to have camera in hand snapping away.
In conclusion, let me say that it has been a 23-year honor to have started, owned and published a magazine that celebrates a breed for which I love so deeply. I am forever grateful for the relationships I have made along the way.
I hope you enjoy and treasure this final keepsake issue as much as I will.
Theresa M. Lyons
Owner/Publisher/Editor-in-Chief
