When stopping at the box office of the Commonweal Theatre in Lanesboro, Minn., there is usually a furry friend named Lucy who will greet you.
Lucy’s owners are husband and wife team Adrienne Sweeney, Associate Artistic Director/Director of External Relations, and Hal Cropp, Executive Director of the Commonweal Theatre. Lucy has become a member of the theatre group and loves to spend time with the people at the Commonweal and pretty much anyone else.
When asked Lucy’s breed, Sweeney laughs and says the dog is an “American Hybrid,” the term they use, as they were told when they got her that she is a mix of Chihuahua and terrier but there are pretty sure she has some schnauzer in her as well.
The couple got Lucy in March of 2011 from Paws and Claws Humane Society in Rochester, Minn., after it had become apparent to them that they were supposed to provide Lucy with her forever home.
Adrienne’s family had owned dogs while she was growing up but she had never owned a dog of her own as an adult. She did have two cats that were litter mates, not knowing at the time that she got them that they were only five weeks old. She had to give them extra care, and they became family members.
“We were super-bonded, me and these cats,” says Sweeney. When one of the cats passed away at the age of 18 it hit Adrienne very hard. Although the couple still had two other cats Sweeney says, “I couldn’t imagine getting another cat but I wanted to do something” to fill that void.
“I started looking on the Paws and Claws website and she kept showing up,” Sweeney says about Lucy. She was on the website, was adopted and taken off the website, and then a couple days later she was back on the site. Come to find out an elderly lady had adopted her, later realizing the energy a seven month old puppy has, and brought her back.
When Sweeney saw that Lucy was once again up for adoption through Paws and Claws, she resisted the urge to jump in her car and drive up there saying, “I knew if I went up it was over,” as she knows herself well enough to realize the dog would have been in the car with her on the trip back home.
Cropp happened to be up in the Twin Cities so Sweeney called him and informed him that the dog, already named Lucy, was available for adoption again. Sweeney asked him to stop at Paws and Claws to see the dog on his way home and see how he felt about it and they would “take it from there,” she said.
Cropp took a detour on his way home the next day to stop at Paws and Claws. He visited Lucy and then drove home. When he got home he said to Sweeney, “Why don’t you get in the car,” and they jumped in the vehicle and drove right back up to Paws and Claws.
“When we got her she had already been in three homing situations,” states Sweeney, so they were very happy to give Lucy a home she will never have to leave.
Before they started looking for a dog, Cropp and Sweeney had discussed how much they work and how busy their schedule can be. They decided if they got a puppy that it would be a part of their everyday lives.
“She comes in with us every day,” notes Sweeney, as the Commonweal Theatre has become her second home and those involved with the Commonweal have become Lucy’s second family.
Lucy has her own chair at the conference table during meetings. “She goes to every meeting — she loves meetings,” says Sweeney. “People will literally pass her down the line,” during meetings until she ends up back in her own chair, explains Sweeney.
“It’s really nice because even when we are both in rehearsal she can be here and she goes to meetings with people,” states Sweeney.
“I think she is much happier here,” than being left home all day with the cats, Sweeney says.
Although her owners are her favorite people, Lucy loves attention from everyone, especially Stela Burdt the box office manager at the Commonweal Theatre. “Stela is the be all and the end all,” to Lucy, according to Sweeney. On performance nights Lucy is usually in the box office with Burdt greeting patrons.
Lucy is now eight years old and weighs 12 pounds. Lucy has wonderful owners that tend to her needs, which includes making her food themselves. Her favorite treats are chicken wraps from Trader Joes and, “whatever is in Stela’s desk is the other thing that she loves,” states Sweeney, as she laughs and adds, “one of the reasons she loves Stela so much is because Stela gives her junk food.” Sweeney admits she also shares her favorite snack, pretzel nuggets, with Lucy.
Lucy’s favorite places are home, the Commonweal Theatre, Sweeney’s mom’s house in Philadelphia, Pa., and of course, Stela’s house. Lucy loves attention and is fond of naps, although she tends to snore while snoozing. Some of her favorite activities are running on the trail and playing in piles of leaves.
“She really is a very sociable dog,” says Sweeney, and patrons seek her out when they come to the Commonweal. “She basically loves being with people — wherever people are.”
The Commonweal Theatre Company is located at 208 Parkway Avenue N. in Lanesboro. For more information call (800) 657-7025 or (507)467-2525 or visit commonwealtheatre.org.
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