I came to my first cat show because I loved cats. That hasn't changed.
I have been a TICA member since 1983. I remember showing my first two pedigreed cats as alters at one of my first shows in Austin, Texas — a pair of red point Siamese littermates, given to me as an anniversary gift. I had no idea there was a difference between a show cat and a pet.
Everyone at that show was so friendly and welcoming. Solveig Pfluger was especially kind to me — after judging my cats, she told me, very gently, that it might be best to keep Misty, the spay, at home, though Leo, the neuter, did have some potential as a show cat. She delivered it in such a warm way that instead of being offended on Misty's behalf, I decided I wanted to learn everything I could about show cats and shows. That experience is what kept me coming back.
I still breed my cats. I still go to shows. I still love it.
I became President because I believed TICA could be more — more modern, more accessible, more genuinely international. Together, we proved it.
I'm asking for a third term because the work isn't finished. Not because I need the title. Because I started something and I intend to see it through.
I won't pretend these years have been without difficulty. But every time I walked into a show hall and saw what this community does for people and for cats, I knew the answer.
TICA MEMBER SINCE 1983 · SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS · STILL BREEDING. STILL JUDGING. STILL HERE.
Statistics tell you what happened. They don't tell you what it felt like.
It felt like a member registering their first litter and getting a response in hours. It felt like a breeder discovering a community they didn't know existed. It felt like a household pet owner watching their rescue cat earn a title alongside the pedigree cats.
And there is more to do. The legislative threats to our hobby are real and growing. The judging programme needs investment. Show expansion in regions that are only just beginning is unfinished work. The systems we built are the foundation — not the ceiling.
I won't pretend the Board always agrees, because we don't — and I don't actually think we should. Some of the hardest conversations I've had in this role were with people who care about this association every bit as much as I do, just differently. That's not dysfunction. That's what it looks like when people are genuinely invested rather than just going along.
I'd rather have those disagreements out in the open than pretend a unity that isn't real. What I can promise is that every one of them, even the difficult ones, has been in service of the same thing: an association worth being part of.
I'm asking for your vote. Not because I think I deserve it automatically. Because I believe what we've built together is worth protecting — and because I know what we still have to do.
Your ballot arrives by email in October. Please make sure your email address is current in TFMS before then. If your ballot goes to an old address, it won't reach you.
This election is decided by fewer votes than you might think. In an association this size, every single ballot genuinely changes the margin. Yours matters.
If you've ever walked into a show hall and felt like you belonged. If you've ever seen your cat earn a title and felt that particular joy that only this community understands — that's what we're protecting.
Vote TICA Forward.
Vicki Jo Harrison & Luiz Paulo Faccioli · 2026