Colorado woman earns second selection as judge at iconic Westminster Dog Show
A lifetime spent in appreciation of rare and beautiful things prepared Joyce Vanek to judge multiple breeds at the event’s 148th edition in New York
Olivia Sun/The Colorado Sun via Report for America
EVERGREEN — Outside, even on an overcast and chilly spring morning, the foothills rise around Joyce Vanek’s home and wrap the slowly thawing vale in the striking natural beauty that drew her to Colorado.
Inside, a 3-year-old champion Portuguese water dog curiously greets visitors before hopping onto the couch and settling next to her owner. Harper, named in part for famed novelist Harper Lee (earlier pets included a miniature donkey named Atticus and a cat named Scout), offers living, breathing evidence of Vanek’s appreciation of rare and beautiful things — whether it’s champion pups, bagging four of the Seven Summits or appreciating fine wine as a certified sommelier.
All around them, walls and tables covered with books, photos, framed sketches and assorted mementos reflect Vanek’s passionate life spent breeding, showing and — after years of experience and training — judging dogs in competition.
One particular keepsake, a page of typewritten lines beneath an iconic logo of a pointer mid-stride, captures the culmination of that passion: an invitation to judge this year’s Westminster Dog Show in New York, widely regarded as the world’s premier canine event.
