Emmy came to us in November 2008.  She was our empty-nest dog, as our only child, Sydney, was in college.  We'd been without a pet since fall of 2006 and it seemed a good time to welcome another dog to the family.  We dog sat for a colleague's golden retriever that summer and marveled at how much we missed having a golden around.  The colleague referred us to the golden retriever rescue organization his dog came from.  We applied, were accepted, and within a couple of months had our Emmy.  As many golden's do, Emmy ended up with significant skin allergy issues.  The last couple of years of her life were challenging, to that end, and when the terminal melanoma diagnosis was revealed, we determined she'd been through so much, we'd allow her last weeks with us to be without further poking, prodding, etc.  They were GREAT weeks.  As loving as ever, her companionship remained, the ever-present wagging tail and gleeming brown eyes spoke to our hearts.  She was a pretty red girl.  All who knew here fell under her spell.  Lovely Emmy.  We didn't get to have you nearly long enough, but are forever enriched for what time we had.