March is Women’s History Month. In celebration, Pick Up Sticks Jewelry Company is featuring prominent women throughout the month and highlighting the impact they had on the world. And to add a little more fun to the history lesson, we are selecting jewelry charms that embody each woman’s unique personality and accomplishments. Today we are celebrating Susan Butcher.
Love, Sweat, and Paws
Susan Howlet Butcher was an American dog musher, and the second woman to win the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. She was also the first musher to win four out of five sequential years. Granite, her lead dog, was with her for each win. Once a little pup who nobody believed in, because of Susan’s faith in Granite, and hard work by both, he eventually became one of the greatest lead dogs in Iditarod history.
In both 1987 and 1988, Butcher was named Sportswoman of the Year by the Women’s Sports Foundation. Also in 1988, she was inducted into the American Academy of Achievement.
To coincide with the start of the yearly Iditarod, the first Saturday of every March is celebrated as “Susan Butcher Day” by the State of Alaska.
Breaking Trails
In 1976, Susan established the Trail Breaker Kennel. The kennel’s first location was in Eureka, Alaska, with a Fairbanks branch opening in 1990, by her husband (also a renowned musher) David Monson. In 1993, the Fairbanks kennel became a tour stop for the Riverboat Discovery, allowing David and Susan to share their love of mushing.
Although Susan passed in 2006, Trail Breaker Kennel remains open and can still be viewed as a stop from the Riverboat Discovery. Read more about Susan Butcher’s legacy and her amazing dog Granite on the Trail Breaker Kennel website.
Charming Susan
Jewelry charms that fit Susan’s warm, dog-loving personality and championships include “Dog,” Number 1,” and our “Four-Legged,” which states, “Love is a four-legged word.” We recommend pairing the charms with our Silver and Gold Rosary Necklace, since gold dominates in Alaska and the silver reminds us of her dog, Granite. You don’t have to win the Iditarod to celebrate your four-legged friends, and these charms are sure to bring joy to anyone who loves their furry family members like Susan loved hers.
Sources:
En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Susan Butcher. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_Butcher [Accessed 23 Feb. 2019].
Trail Breaker Kennel. (2019). Our History | Trail Breaker Kennel. [online] Available at: https://trailbreakerkennel.com/our-history/ [Accessed 23 Feb. 2019].