Frank Herman Grover

Frank Herman Grover, our beloved Father, Father-in-law and Grandfather passed beyond the veil at 3:00pm on Tuesday January 9, 2007. He is now happily united with his wife and life's helpmate Kathleen Woods Grover, who went before him on January 13, 1987. His Father Carl Frances Grover, Mother Mabel Neal Grover and a sister Clarissa Grover Ford also predeceased him.

Frank was born on March 29, 1918 in Aurora, Marion County, Oregon into a family that valued education. Carl was a school principal and Mabel was a schoolteacher.

Frank was an Eagle Scout and proudly watched his son Peter receive his own Eagle Scout designation with Silver Palm. While his son was growing up and involved in scouting, Frank served on Boards, led fundraising drives and heavily supported scouting in their Carmel Valley California locale.

Frank received his BA in Speech from Redlands University in 1940. He was on the Debate Team there and won an Extemporaneous Speaking Award in 1939. He received his MA from the Divinity School at the University of Chicago in1942. He then taught part-time in the Speech and Drama Department at UofC.

It was in 1941 that he met a beautiful Irish redhead who was also a UofC student. His future was sealed. They married February 24, 1942. They were not blessed with children until Peter came along in 1955.

Frank's chosen career was producing educational films for elementary and secondary schools. Many of his films were award winners and once a school had purchased one Grover film they had to have more. His films were favorites of teachers across the US. "A Badger's Bad Day, Poetry for Me, The Christmas Deer," were just a few of the many successful films produced by Frank and Kathleen under their Grover Film Productions corporation which was founded in 1958. Frank continued to sell his films well into the 1990's.

It was in the late 1940's, while Frank and Kathleen were still living in Hyde Park in Chicago that they were chosen by a Doberman. They both became captivated, fascinated and fell absolutely in love with the breed of Doberman Pinschers. Their first bitch was Abbenoir who earned the UDT, High in Trial in 1950.

They established their kennel, Barrierdobes, and both Kathleen and Frank studied the breed and showed in the ring. Frank went on to become a globally known and highly respected judge both of confirmation and of the working class and some sporting class dogs.

He judged in more than fifteen countries on five continents around the globe, and in most states in the USA. He was voted by his peers to judge at the National DPCA Doberman Pinscher Club of America eleven times to include all categories.

He served as DPCA President twice, in 1965 and 1966. He received their Lifetime Achievement Award in 1990. He also served in officer positions in many other clubs over the years.

Frank was also a respected and sought after author. He wrote a column for the AKC Gazette for many years, he has written hundreds of articles for the national and local Doberman magazines as well as articles for other breed publications. He labored long and hard recently to edit and publish a training manual for Doberman judges and he was engaged in writing a book on the Doberman just before his last illness.

He is survived by his Son, Peter Woods Grover, his daughter-in-law Laura Westbrook Grover, his grandchildren Sarah Ellen and Stefan Daniel Grover and a wide circle of friends and colleagues the world over.