By: Lori Hall-McNary

The smell of burning iron still lingered in the air. “Pretty horse, but she’ll never amount to anything.” The shoer slammed his truck door. The Vet had said the same thing. “Pretty Palomino mare, but too many problems for a horse so young to become a barrel racer.”
The grown-ups may be experts, but when I looked into Shamrock’s soft brown eyes I could see the flicker of a warrior’s spirit. The afternoon sun glinted off her golden coat.

I knew she had the heart of a champion if only someone believed in her. I believed in her.

By: Kelly I. Corcoran

“7th place goes to Kelly Corcoran riding FG Pennylane.” We had done it! Finally my little, Arabian mare and I had placed at the 4-H Pennsylvania State Horse Show. It certainly had been a ride to remember. During the previous year we had attended this show but had not placed. The State Farm Complex was certainly intimidating with its large arena, bright lights, and rows of seats up to the ceiling.

By: Jessica Shaw

On my third birthday, a 10.3 hand ball of fluff by the name of Beau entered my life. This $200 pony would have an indelible imprint upon my life.

When I first met Beau, he was a terror. A spoiled child’s mount put out to pasture for several years, Beau had become a brat who thought he was in charge. A twitch was needed to shoe him; he had to be pinned against a wall to get a saddle on his back. And boy could he buck! No one stayed on his back. Adults and kids alike went flying countless times. I loved Beau but was desperately afraid of him.

By: Jessica Shaw

Riding my horse (Ionyah) is a constant game of communication. Ionyah and I tell each other things. A shift of weight, a squeeze, a touch of the rein, a turn of the head. These are the ways I talk to Ionyah. Ionyah tells me thing as well. Whether she is scared or happy, wheat is happening in nature, what might happen next.

When Ionyah and I go riding, we teach each other things. I teach her the frivolous ideals of the equestrian society; how to carry herself, how to be flexible, how to be obedient. Ionyah teaches me things that no university could teach; friendship, to appreciate the beauty of the sunset, to listen, to feel, to trust. I believe that I learn the more valuable lesson.

By: Lola Endres

My daughter, Lindsay, has been around horses since she was a week old. It was only natural,that when she turned nine, she would show in our county 4-H shows. Since our beloved pony,
Blaze, was nearing retirement, and our other two horses were semi-retired, we agreed to let Lindsay show a family horse in her first year of 4-H. Determined to be the best she could
be, Lindsay rode every day, and couldn’t wait until the first show.
One evening, while preparing to ride, the mare spooked, went over backwards, twisting Lindsay’s leg in the stirrup, breaking it in two different places. The mare was retired to become
a broodmare, and Lindsay’s confidence was shattered.
After a long recovery, with patience, and Blaze to help her along, Lindsay began riding again, but didn’t want to try another horse just yet. When another family horse became available the following year, Lindsay was determined to try it again. Again, she rode every day, and couldn’t wait until the first show. 4-H enrollment was completed, and Lindsay excitedly practiced and waited.

By: Sue Wortman

It was May when Bohdan came into my life. Bohdan means “Given by God” in Russian, and to me, he truly is a gift by God.

This magnificent animal’s story begins in a pasture that my husband and I passed each Sunday on the way to church. We usually saw Bo, as I call him, grazing in his pasture with his pasture mate. Even from the car, I noticed that his ribs showed and his spine stuck out. On one particular Sunday, I found him lying down. I know this was life threatening as a result of the knowledge I had gained as a member of the Horse Protection Society of North Carolina so I made a formal abuse complaint to Joan Benson the director of HPS.

By: Samantha Burow

Two and a half years ago, my father bought me a beautiful Quarter Horse mare – Sophie. I had been taking riding lessons for about a year when Sophie came up for sale, I loved this mare dearly, her and I connected from day one. So, after lots of begging, pleading and promises of ‘really, I will look after her’ my Mother and Father caved in and bought her for me.

By: Melissa Gros

For six years, I have been competing in the NBHA (National Barrel Horse Association). For those entire six years, I have wanted to do nothing but compete at the Youth World Championships held in Jackson, Mississippi. I started out on just and old mare that ended up not entering into the arena after a back accident one year. I then got thrown onto anyone’s horse that would let me ride, never placing consistently in any one division. My dream became to compete at “World” to prove to myself and everyone else that I was good enough to do it!

By: Charli Ann Stevens

Have you ever met a horse that was absolutely destined to be yours—not once, but twice and forever more? At a mere fifteen, I was on a search for my second horse. My abilities and show ring desires had outgrown my first horse. Being from an average middle-class family, we did not have a lot to spend on my future show horse. To top it off, I was looking for an Arabian who was at least 15 hands high and had the potential to be an English horse. While the task seemed undaunting to all of the adults I knew, I was not deterred. For two years, we searched for a horse—calling almost every classified in the local papers and seeing a good number of horses. All of the horses were in our price range, but none of them fit the bill.

By: Teresa Byron Amen

The great man stood there in his radiant brilliance. All of nature was alive and reveled in his glory. The man was humble but everything commanded attention in his presence.

He was drawn to the pond and seemed mesmerized by the contents. His gaze was broken once or twice to look up and around but found no audience. Then instantly out of no where a black horse appeared. He walked close to the man and playfully nudged his arm to break his stare that he had on the water. The man gave the horse a knowing look that only the two would understand. He motioned him to join him by the water. The man turned his gaze back to the pond and the horse shared his focus of something far deeper that the ponds floor.