Home » Dennis McCoy – Encourager

Dennis McCoy – Encourager

Linda Ayers Turner Knorr
April 18, 2023

Qualities of being a great encourager include possessing a great heart for people, having an empathetic ear, an eye for potential, being a consistent source of hope, and setting a positive and inspiring example. Dennis McCoy lived the life of a great encourager.

Dog Show Judges are afforded many opportunities to reflect great credit on the American Kennel Club and its many activities. Dennis McCoy was an example of everything good about our sport! The greatness he achieved is legendary.

After speaking with Mari-Beth O’Neill and learning about Dennis McCoy’s passing, I phoned my friend Jeanette Stribling to share the sad news. Jeanette is just one example of a newcomer whose life has been impacted by AKC Judge Dennis McCoy.

Here’s what she reiterated to me:

“After acquiring my first show dog, a Boston Terrier, I joined the Greenville Kennel Club, enrolled in their Show and Go Training Classes, and started practicing to get ready for the ring. Being a novice was an awkward experience, to say the least. It made me question whether or not exhibiting in conformation was for me.

After I left the ring at my first show, Judge Dennis McCoy came up to me with lots of words of encouragement. He also gave me tips for showing the next day. He boosted my confidence tremendously. My little Boston and I came back the next day and picked up our very first points under Judge Randy Garren. There is no doubt in my mind that Judge Dennis McCoy is the reason I continued to exhibit and enjoy having success in the ring.”

Jeanette Stribling was elected President of the Greenville Kennel Club in 2018. During her tenure, club membership has doubled. She has received the club’s Member of the Year Award, and in 2020, Jeanette was the recipient of the prestigious AKC Sportsmanship Award.

Thanks to Dennis McCoy’s encouragement there are many more enthusiastic supporters of American Kennel Club activities all around the globe. Let each one of us ask ourselves what we’re doing to inspire the next generation. Take time to make a difference!

Dennis McCoy was an example of everything good about our sport! The greatness he achieved is legendary.

Linda Ayers Turner Knorr

At the age of four, Linda's love for TV's Lassie prompted her parents, Roy and Hazel Ayers to surprise her with a Collie. Her first times entering the confirmation ring began at age six. From showing her Conrad Collies in juniors, to judging, to becoming a part of an immediate family of three AKC judges, her life has evolved around the sport of purebred dogs. As a young professional just out of the University of Georgia, Linda served on the Executive Staffs of two Georgia Governors. She moved from serving at the State Capitol to assisting the Chairman of the Hyatt Hotel Corporation. As chairman and founder of a family owned Manufacturing Corporation and real estate holding company, Linda has overseen operations, acquisitions, and dispositions of considerable business holdings for over four decades. Her diverse companies have manufactured packaged goods for many household products you likely used in your homes, interior components for the automotive industry you enjoy in your cars, and industrial chemical products used in the electric utility industry. She partnered in commercial acquisitions in Washington, D.C. on a 250 million dollar level. Linda has developed significant properties delivering hundreds of home sites in Greenville, South Carolina in conjunction with NVR/Ryan Homes in addition to apartments, an IMAX theater, commercial tracts and much more. She is the proud mother of one son, Edward P. (Todd) Turner,III of Columbia, South Carolina. After retiring from many years as District Director of the Collie Club of America, Linda served for fourteen years as AKC Delegate for the Greenville Kennel Club. She is currently President of the Carolinas Judges Study Group, a Lifetime Honorary Member of the Collie Club of Georgia where she was their very first Junior Member, a Lifetime Honorary Member of the Greenville Kennel Club, and a Quarter Century Member of the Collie Club of America. Her Christian faith is exhibited in her belief that, “Time is the most important gift you can share to make someone happy or to make a difference.” Mentoring athletes from professional to high school levels has been a huge passion and blessing in Linda's life. At any given time you may find her in a locker room, on the playing field, or on the court inspiring winners. To quote her, "I would rather go to a ballgame than a ball." Linda has been on board since the inception of ShowSight