Muffin's Story
Muffin, a mixed breed, must have been a beautiful puppy, but we didn't have the opportunity
to share that time with her. The vet estimated her age to be 6 months shortly after we decided
to keep her for life. That decision was not easy, and we had given her away twice within the
first weeks before we realized that we had fallen in love with her.
Muffin had been a stray found wandering the streets of an industrial area in Newark, NJ. A
co-worker of Jerry's brought a picture of Muffin to work in hopes that someone would
adopt her. We both had dogs in our childhood but the decision to adopt was complicated by
our living in an apartment above doctors' offices. We adopted Muffin, but we were so
troubled by the wisdom of it that we first gave her away to the doctors' cleaning lady and
the second time to a co-worker of Jerry's.  Both times we requested that she be returned -
the first because of guilt, the second because we knew she was meant to be ours for life.
Muffin's adoption picture
1969
Muffin in her new home
1969
Muffin at the Jersey shore
early 1970's
We were born, raised and spent our first years of marriage in New Jersey.  In 1974 we
relocated to the Daytona Beach area of Florida where Lu's parents had retired. Not having
children made the move easy, and Muffin never minded a car ride even one of 1200 miles.
We first rented then purchased a small home in Holly Hill that had a small yard that we soon
fenced. Here, Muffin busied herself keeping the squirrels treed in the palms. Florida's heat
and humidity were tough on us especially Muffin so her shaggy coat was trimmed much more
often than when we lived in New Jersey. Muffin was always along with us when we took
many vacations north to escape Florida's subtropical weather. It was on one of those
vacations that we discovered where we wanted to plant our roots. Sadly, Muffin did not
accompany us in life to northern New England where she would have loved the cool breezes,
the open meadow and the squirrels and chipmunks scurrying across the stone walls. Her
ashes, though, are buried on the hill overlooking our forever home.
Muffin and squirrel
1977
Lu and Muffin
1977
Muffin's sudden death in 1979 was a devastating loss for us. We could not imagine having
lived those 10 years without her. She was our constant companion giving us so much and
demanding so little. Muffin's profound effect on our lives made it inevitable that other dogs
would follow.
Muffin at backyard gate
1976
Muffin and Jerry
1974