Anita Patricia Fredricks

Anita was born near Spokane and raised on her family’s farm developing a love of animals at an early age. After two years of fine arts education at Washington State University and Eastern Washington College (now University), she found her way to the Seattle World’s Fair as a server at the Hof Brau Haus, and then to California where she ended up working as a cashier at Stanford’s University Hospital. It was there in their shared apartment complex that she met Grant, her life partner for almost 58 years. Anita and Grant were married in June 1967 in Fairfield, Washington. Anita passed away on March 31st following a sudden heart attack.

Anita & Grant lived in California, Maryland, Virginia, central Washington where they bought their first show Schip in 1974, Kansas, Germany, and Omaha Nebraska before returning to Washington for Grant’s command assignment before retiring from the Army in 1985. They built their dream house and kennel, moving for the last time in 1992.

Anita, was a 50-year Schipperke Club of America (SCA) member, co-founder of Blumoon Schipperkes with her husband Grant and co-breeder of Best In Show and multiple Best In Specialty Show, multiple Register of Merit (ROM), ROM-Excellent, Hall of Fame and multiple High in Trial Schips, and award-winning artist and illustrator of SCA’s Official Illustrated Guide to the Schipperke Standard.

Anita considered Cinder her once-in-a-lifetime Schip. Cinder was top SCA brood bitch in 1990, top obedience Schip in both the U.S. and Canada in 1991 and 1992 and earned Super Utility Dog awards for three or more same-show open and utility qualifications in AKC, CKC and UKC trials. Cinder is the foundation bitch for all generations of Blumoon Schipperkes.

In addition to Blumoon’s historic impact on the Schipperke breed and Schip bloodlines, Anita was an award-winning artist working as an illustrator and in bronze, oils, watercolors, acrylics, sculpture, and stained glass often featuring Schipperkes. Anita was also an award-winning landscape designer, master gardener and gourmet cook.

She is survived by her husband Grant who lives at the family home in Olympia, sister Kareen Keilman who lives in Spanish Springs, Nevada near Reno, and brother H. Jon Verdick who lives in Waverly, Washington near Spokane.

Anita will be inured eventually with her husband Grant at the Tahoma National Cemetery.