October 11-12, 2025 – Stars of Tomorrow Junior Agility Camp

Stacie Cwik found Agility in 2009 with her Norwich Terrier, Riley, as an outlet to help strengthen the bond between handler and dog—this was her newfound passion after giving up competitive horseback riding, which was something she did from the age of 10.

Stacie quickly fell in love with the sport, and now has been training and competing for over 10 years with multiple dogs in AKC, USDAA and UKI. Stacie & her dogs attend local, regional and national events.

Stacie believes in continuing education and travels around the country to learn from different people to keep her own skills evolving. In addition to competing, Stacie has been a UKI judge since 2018.

Stacie is highly analytical and does not believe in a “one size fits all” approach. Problem solving is one of her favorite parts of dog training (and of life!), and applies this to her philosophy for Agility. She firmly believes in working with each individual team to help them be successful at their goals. Stacie has been teaching for 8+ years with weekly classes and monthly workshops in Northern IL and travels to teach seminars on occasion.

In addition to Agility, Stacie enjoys taking her dogs on long walks, hiking, kayaking and swimming. Outside of dogs, Stacie has a full-time job in Marketing, enjoys culinary experiences, photography and traveling.

Gwyn Friedl is from WI and has been active in the sport of dog agility since 2012. From AWC large dog team alternate and WAO large dog team member with Amigo, to SOAWC alternate in 2024 and now team member of this team in 2025 with Deseo, Gwyn has accomplished many goals in both AKC, UKI and USDAA agility. Including multiple finals at national events and winning or on the podium at Regional events with both dogs.

She has been teaching agility since 2015 and now runs her own agility training and canine trigger point massage business. Training juniors that are interested in learning more about this sport has been something Gwyn has always supported starting back in 2012 when her Sheltie, JJ, was paired up with Finley Richgels at the young age of 11 years old to show her the ropes of agility and competition. Those were some of the best moments getting to watch the two of them play agility together and allow Finley to learn from a seasoned agility dog. Gwyn’s dog, Amigo, will join this camp to help teach and we can’t wait to have him follow in JJ’s pawprints.

Gracie Huffman discovered agility in 2017 when her first dog, a mini schnauzer, had more energy than she knew what to do with. Now 8 years later, Gracie’s love for agility has grown and she judges and teaches it full time while also training and competing with her own dogs. Guster is a 6 year old Mini Schnauzer, and Kudos is a 3 year old Shetland Sheepdog. Both Guster and Kudos have been members of the AKC European Open Team USA.

Gracie’s biggest strength is being able to break down complex behaviors into bite size pieces for both dog AND human, and she has a huge passion for working with people who are new to the sport, or who have non-traditional breeds. Whether your goal is to step onto the international stage one day, or to just learn something new and have fun, Gracie cannot wait to help you succeed.

Laura began her agility journey with dobermans and her first novice A dog, Roxy, was ranked as a Doberman Top Twenty Agility Dog for four years. She has competed in several European Open tryouts and was an alternate large dog for two years with her border collie, Dash. Dash and Envy competed in multiple US Open and other larger local competitions and stood on several podiums.

Dash and Laura also traveled to Santiago, Chile in 2017 to compete as a member of the US America y Caribes large dog team. Laura hopes to be back to international tryouts and competition with her younger dog, Bravo, and in future years with Bravo’s son, Bruiser.

Claudette is retired from her day job and now spends all her time dedicated to agility, as a competitor, judge, instructor, seminar presenter, ISC trial chair, Americas & Caribe Team USA assistant coach, and Junior Camp director. She has been in multiple world teams, Americas & Caribe, WAO, and has also represented Team Brazil in SOAWC and EO. Claudette runs mini poodles and has been on national and international podiums with her current dog, Nacho, and previously with her novice A dog, Simba. 

Claudette teaches classes at Canine Sports Zone and seminars locally and nationally. As a UKI judge, she has been invited to judge the US Open, West Coast Open, Classics, ICE events, and in 2026, DASH events. She enjoys designing challenging courses with good lines for dogs that test skills and team work and brings these challenges to class and seminars. When teaching and judging she likes to emphasize the importance of both handler and dog having a good time when doing agility. The sport should be about developing the partnership while having fun together and never betraying the trust the dogs put on their handlers. 

She is excited about creating this opportunity for junior handlers and hopes this will be the first of many camps.

Finley Richgels grew up in the junior agility world and knows firsthand how incredible the experience can be. From 2018 to 2022, Finley proudly represented Team USA at the Junior Open Agility World Championship (JOAWC) with two border collies . Those years shaped not only Finley’s agility skills, but also a love for teamwork, problem-solving, and the friendships built through the sport.

Now competing on the adult IFCS WAC Team USA, Finley is passionate about giving back to the junior community. Helping young handlers build confidence, tackle challenges, and discover just how much they and their dogs are capable of is one of Finley’s favorite parts of the sport. Finley is thrilled to be part of camp this year and can’t wait to cheer on and support the next generation of junior agility stars!

Shawna Richgels is a lifelong dog agility enthusiast with over 20 years of experience in the sport. As the owner of Canine Sports Zone, she’s created a supportive, welcoming space for handlers and dogs of all levels to learn, grow, and thrive.

A multi-time finalist at AKC Nationals and a finalist and winner at the Cynosport World Games, Shawna loves the excitement of competition — but her true passion lies in the training process and the little details that set great teams apart.

Shawna is also no stranger to the junior agility world, having had a front-row seat to it through her daughter, Finley, who shares the same deep love for the sport. Through those years, she’s seen firsthand how valuable the junior experience can be, and she’s passionate about supporting young handlers as they chase their goals and build lasting bonds with their dogs. She’s thrilled to be part of camp this year, helping the next generation of agility teams 

Deb Schulman, Owner Coaching K-9’s LLC, Co-Owner Canine Sports Zone LLC

Prior to dog training, Deb coached collegiate volleyball at UW-Platteville for 30 years.  Part of her coaching philosophy was to build a solid foundation by teaching and training the fundamentals.  She now coaches/trains handlers and dogs in agility with that same philosophy.

Deb began her agility career in 2005 with her Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, Madison, and soon after, Miniature Poodle, Spencer.  She now competes with her Miniature Poodles Trek and Ze’. Deb and Spencer competed internationally for Team USA four times, and Deb and Trek have made thirteen USA Teams (AWC, EO, WAO, SOAWC).

Wanting to give back to the sport of agility and to help grow the sport, Deb accepted a position as the Assistant Coach for the AKC Junior Open Agility World Championships Team (JOAWC) for four years. Deb has over 15 years of instructional experience in agility and dog training.  

Natalie is a 22-year-old former junior handler with 19 years of dog training experience. She started in dogs at 3 years old with a Samoyed, and has since trained and run a variety of breeds in AKC and UKI to various levels of success. Most notably, Natalie has been on the JOAWC (formerly EOJ) team four times, where she earned multiple medals, including the USA’s first Gold Medal at the event in 2016, as well as being on the EO team twice and making Team Finals in 2023.

Currently, Natalie has three dogs. Fire, the aforementioned 2016 and 2018 medalist, who is now retired; Vengeance, the EO team member and JOAWC medalist, who just retired from FCI competitions; and Antic, her up-and-coming young dog.

Through all of her time showing dogs, she hopes that every junior knows two things: You learn more from failure than you do from success, and there will always be someone somewhere who is excited to see you succeed.