STEPHEN WILLIAM WETMORE, SHEEPDOG TRAINER, BREEDER AND COMPETITOR, SHEEP FARMER, CARPENTER, SUGARMAKER

After a seven year long and courageous battle with lymphoma, Stephen William Wetmore of Strafford, Vt. died early in the morning of November 2 3 , 2019 at the Jack Byrne Center for Palliative and Hospice Care at Dartmouth Hitchcock Memorial Hospital. He was 68. Family, friends and an ever-faithful border collie surrounded Stephen as he passed away peacefully.

He was born April 6, 1951 in Easton, PA, the second child of Dr. Stephen R. Wetmore, physician, and social worker Ada Silverstein Wetmore. His family began vacationing in Vermont in the late 1950's eventually purchasing an abandoned farm in Strafford dating back to 1798. Thus began Stephen's childhood exposure to and life-long love of dogs, farming, nature and winter sports, most notably, skiing.

As a talented skier who frequented the slopes of the Pocono and Green Mountains, he became a PSIA certified ski instructor well before graduating from Easton Area High School. He went on to ski professionally in Utah during the early 1970s before moving back permanently to Vermont in 1975. A graceful and fearless skier, he was one of the first mogul skiers in the Poconos Mts., introducing and teaching many other skiers how to conquer the bumps.

Stephen has always had a unique talent and sixth sense when it came to dogs. Any breed, purebred or mongrel seemed to sense a special affinity with him, often showering him with love and devotion. He purchased his first dog, a female Labrador retriever, when he was freshman in high school. He went on to successfully train her in obedience, achieving champion status as recognized by the American Kennel Club. Later, after returning to Vermont and farming sheep and jersey cattle at his beloved family farm (which he named Spring Valley Farm) a friend gave him his first border collie puppy. Stephen trained this dog to herd sheep and soon he obtained and bred other border collies that he then successfully competed with in sheepdog trials throughout the northeastern United States and Canada. While other competitors frequently purchased border collies who had been already trained, most from the UK, Stephen bred and trained his own dogs and often placed at the top of the leader board in some of the biggest and most prestigious trials of the northeastern USA and Canada.

There are rarely any sheep producers or border collie enthusiasts in Vermont or the Northeast who are not aware of Stephen's influence and legacy as a trainer, breeder and competitor of sheepdogs. An active member of the Northeast Border Collie Association (NEBCA) he served on the leadership board as President from 1989 to 1992, Vice President from 1993 – 1996, and Chair of the Open Trials Committee from 2001 – 2003.

His unique sense of humor, his love for people and dogs, not only enabled him to breed, train and compete with Border Collies but also to teach others about the breed. Stephen was always ready with advice and encouragement to new competitors in the sheepdog trial circuit. Many shepherds throughout the northeast credit Stephen with piquing their interest and improving their skills with handling their dogs and livestock. His sheepdog demonstrations thrilled young and old alike at the Billings Farm Museum in Woodstock, VT, along with demos at the Shaker Village in Enfield, NH, the Merck Forest and Farm Center in Rupert, VT, and at countless fairs and schools throughout Vermont and New England. It was through Stephen's urging and initiative that the Tunbridge World's Fair added a sheepdog trial to their Thursday evening venue. For over 10 years the trial has attracted and entertained fairgoers and has become a yearly tradition and event. Stephen was also instrumental in creating the "Vermont Triple Crown", a series of three successive open trials taking place within Vermont for three days and culminating at his beloved Spring Valley Farm in Strafford.

An accomplished carpenter, Stephen built and remodeled many custom homes throughout Vermont and New Hampshire with his friend of many years, Strafford contractor Blake Spencer. With his unbridled ambition and energy, he was able to transform and reclaim his family's traditional Vermont "hill farm" into a picturesque farm that included sheep and his amazing dogs along with a productive sugarbush.

In addition to his loving friend, Pam Davies of Glen Gardner, NJ; Stephen is survived by his older sister, Emily Wetmore; her husband, Thomas Llama Lettow, of Strafford; a younger sister, Louisa Wetmore King and husband, Bill King of Gypsum, Colorado, along with nephews Nathan and Colden King of Denver, CO; a younger brother, Thomas Wetmore and wife Heidi Marcotte, of Hartland, VT, along with niece Ada Wetmore and husband, Justin Lloyd Miller of Shelburne, VT; and niece Jenevra Wetmore of Barre, VT.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Stephen's memory may be sent to The Hand to Heart Project, PO Box 248, Cornish Flat, NH 03746 ( https://handtoheartproject.org ) or The Lymphoma Research Foundation ( www.lymphoma.org ).

A celebration of Stephen's life will be held in the spring of 2020, place and time to be announced.