Our program has succeeded entirely because of the way that the families of so many riders over the years have thrown themselves into everything that we have done. Those hard working families are being joined by a new crop of riders and their families that are coming out of the wood work everywhere. We have more riders than we have ever had and we have people that want to just work with us to be part of the effort.
This is one of the most gratifying parts of what happens at our horse lot. Participants have a strong sense of ownership in everything that we do. It was a telling moment a few years ago when KC made the off hand comment that "we" have three Shacklefords at the horse lot. He did not say "Steve" has three Shacklefords. He said "we."
I am not being modest when I say that I could not keep this program growing and succeeding. I am not being unrealistic when I say that what "we" can achieve is nearly limitless.
This colt is Legacy, the son of Tradewind and a modern Appaloosa mare. He belongs to Samantha but it will be great fun this summer when "we" train him.
Thanx for the great read. I shared this in it's entirety on my blog as it was a heartfelt say of what I have felt for years about my tiny program in South Florida. Again thanx!
ReplyDelete