A Fall Conference and Workshop of the Leicester Longwool Sheep Breeders Association was held at Colonial Williamsburg November 9 - 11, 2008.  The event was hosted by LLSBA President Elaine Shirley and the Coach and Livestock Dept of Colonial Williamsburg.  It was a very successful conference and everyone who attended had a wonderful time.

46 members and guests attended the conference from all areas of the United States.

On Friday night, a reception was held, complete with food and refreshments.  Introductions were made by all who attended.  These included members, friends, Colonial Williamsburg employees and guest speakers. On display were several items made from Leicester Longwool wool from several of the members.  Members got the opportunity to see how much can be done with the wool and how diverse it is.

A short meeting was held to discuss upcoming events of the LLSBA.  These included the card grading show at the 2009 New York Sheep and Wool Festival in which the Leicester Longwool's will be the featured breed.  Kelly Smith gave the details of what all the LLSBA could do to participate in the show.  Elaine Shirley spoke on the 15th Anniversary card grading show in 2005, what a card grading was and how the 2009 Rhinebeck show would be similar.  Members were encouraged to participate in this event, bring their sheep and to volunteer to help with the show.

The LLSBA membership was given the opportunity to design the artwork for Festival T-shirt and several designs were submitted.  Members voted on the design they wanted that best represented the Leicester Longwool from the entries that were at the conference.  Congratulations goes to Joanie Livermore for her winning entry.

Joan Henry, the Registrar for the LLSBA gave a brief talk about the correct way to fill out registrations and transfers.

A letter from our West Coast Flock Representative, Joanie Livermore was read to the members.  Joanie was unable to attend the conference but wanted everyone to know she was there is spirit.

Kelly Smith told about her meeting with the staff of National Geographic magazine and the upcoming article that would feature a photo of her Leicester Longwool in the March issue.  Other subjects were discussed briefly and the meeting was adjourned Members enjoyed the food and refreshments that was provided by Colonial Williamsburg and got to make acquaintances with one another.

Saturday morning, Dr. Phil Sponenberg (aka "Dr. Phil") gave a wonderful and informative talk on the history of the Leicester Longwools in the United States and the importance keeping the breed going.  He also spoke on genetics of the breed and the importance of keeping all of the original lines going.  He encouraged members to produce breeding rams from as many of the lines as possible.  Many thanks goes to Dr. Phil for his continued support of the Leicester Longwool program and for providing us with his invaluable knowledge. His contribution to the program immeasurable. 

A break was given for lunch and members returned to the Stables to participate in a "hands on" discussion about the breed standard of the Leicester Longwool.  Members were shown how to look for correct body structure, fleece, udder development, teeth, etc. and how they should look and function. Also, Elaine spoke about treating sheep for parasites using the FMACHA method. Several pens of sheep were provided to show the differences in the breed.

The afternoon session was adjourned.

Saturday evening, members met at the Kings Arms Tavern for dinner.  The meal was fabulous and it was so wonderful to see all of the members, from all walks of like, conversing with one another about the same common interest - the Leicester Longwools.  Thank you, Elaine for getting us all together.

Sunday morning, Joan Henry and Kelly Smith gave a talk on how to properly skirt a fleece and how to market the wool.

Ann Brown, a long time member,gave a talk on her book, "The Shepherds Rug" and how she makes braided rugs from roving. 

An open question and answer session was held and the conference was adjourned.

Many thanks to Elaine and all the staff at Colonial Williamsburg for hosting the conference.  And thanks to all of the members who participated - the conference was a tremendous success!!!