THE UPA WOULD LIKE TO SAY THANK YOU!!!

We wish to express our gratitude to the Brad Legg family of Liberty, Missouri for hosting this past convention. It was, as expected, a very informative and fun time for all attending.

Brad and his family had their entire farm looking beautiful, and offered many varieties of peafowl for viewing. Many of the members taking the tour had never before had the opportunity to see some of these colors and patterns. I, personally, had a very special hand-in-hand tour of some of the livestock not generally associated with Legg's Peafowl Farm: rabbits and call ducks. Thank you for the special attention, Dallas. Everything was well organized and convenient with the needs of the members first and foremost. While Brad was leading the pack from one area to the other, Brandon was busy answering questions and catching birds for closer inspection.

Patsy, Ashley, and other family and friends provided a variety of great food. Snack items after our first evening session, and then a wonderful lunch at the farm. Plenty of good food, but I hope no one noticed how many pieces of apple pie I consumed. Caitlin was very adult and polite each time she offered me another piece, so, of course, I couldn't refuse!

Brad graciously donated a bird for a necropsy, and the sacrifice of this one individual bird may save countless others in the future. Dr. Shaw's lecture on diseases and parasites offered something for brand new breeders, as well as people who are not so new. Brad's speech on genetics was also an invaluable tool, and many people hurriedly scribbled notes during his entire talk.

All in all, it was a very relaxing, informative, enjoyable three days. The motel was beautiful and offered many extras. The weather was cool, but didn't diminish anyone's enthusiasm. Thank you to Brad, Patsy, Ashley, Brandon, Dallas, and Caitlin for all of their hard work, planning, and dedication to peafowl and the UPA.

For those of you who have never had the opportunity to attend one of our conventions, you truly don't know what you are missing. Our convention is not for big breeders who make their living breeding and selling birds. Most of us are just like you: we work for a living, get by paycheck to paycheck, and raise peafowl because we think they are beautiful and interesting. For most of us, these three days are the only vacation we have the entire year. Please don't think because you only have 8 or 10 birds that you won't fit in. Make plans to attend this year in Florida-we'll change your mind, and you'll come back year after year.