Speaking of summer experiences I will tell you about the great time I have had.  I retired prematurely in December and still wanted something to do.  I applied at several online companies looking for an accounting job in a national park.  I spent the summer in cool country working at Kings Canyon NP.  That is in CA near Fresno.  I have been living in my trailer all summer, a first for me, and quite an experience.  I want to try this again because it offers many enjoyable experiences, and lots of outdoor scenes, wildlife and views only nature could create.  It helps put life into perspective.  I'm sorry I missed Karen while she was in Phoenix.

Jim and Becky came to Greeneville for a couple of nights (early in August).  The picture of the four of us was taken on self timer the last evening together.  We've all four pledged to attend the 50th.  Bob Strimer

 

  Jim, Becky, Diane, Bob

Becky and Jerry are fortunate to live on the Donovan family farm where she can indulge her passion.  Daughter Jerianne and her family live next door. 

Although Becky was a school teacher and owner-operator of Don-A-Del Child Care Center, she has owned, and/or trained and shown well over a hundred horses.  Her interest has mainly been with the golden saddlebreds, but she has worked with many different breeds. 

For two years Becky taught Equine Science I at the Delaware Joint Vocational School and got paid for doing what she loved.

“Five hours of horses per day, sixteen head in training, sixteen students per year.  These were wonderful kids who won many honors and contests, both state and national.  One horse that we broke and trained in lab won The Ohio State Fair Open Horse Show, Junior Exhibitor Class.  I rode several of the horses we had in the program to many wins.  One outstanding student became my son-in-law!”

She has had two favorite show horses.  The first palomino saddlebred stallion, Cavalier, taught her about showing a parade horse and later, as a gelding, won many classes for Jerianne. 

“He taught my JVS students to pay more attention and he was faithful to me until he died.”

Cabaret was the horse Becky had looked for all her life.  He was nine years old and mad and mean when she bought him at a sale in Kentucky.  It took most of a year and a lot of compromise but once they got it together she showed him 46 times and won 45 blues and championships.  He won the World Championship Western Equipment Class in 1991. 

“I had won World Championships with my golden saddlebreds but this was my best win.  I have since retired from showing and currently have two registered paint horses in my barn, Cisco and Paint, and own in partnership a beautiful golden saddlebred named Dazzle.  He is the most beautiful horse I have ever owned.  I just bought a Haflinger pony, Jolly, and I am teaching my grandchildren, Ben and Bailey, how to drive.”

Click here to see her horses.

Some people collect model cars or model airplanes.  Becky collects model horses.  Every July she spends her birthday at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, celebrating BreyerFest with thousands of collectors of Breyer horses.  This is a huge event and 2009 was special.  Louisville.com had this to say:

Please join us for BreyerFest's 20th anniversary celebration! This is a festival for model horse collectors and horse lovers. BreyerFest is hosted by Breyer and includes three days of fun and excitement with special appearances by some of the top equine extremists in the country.

Each year Breyer presents a Celebration Horse and that horse performs twice a day during the three days of BreyerFest and each three-day ticket holder receives a model of the Celebration Horse.  This year Whizard’s Baby Doll (aka Roxy) was the honoree, ridden by Stacy Westfall.  Stacy does freestyle reining, without a bridle or saddle, and watching horse and rider move gracefully as one is awesome.  This video has been around for a while but it is worth watching.  Stacy and Whizard’s Baby Doll won the Freestyle Championship at the 2006 Quarter Horse Congress in Columbus, Ohio. 

This year, for the first time, Ben (age 16) and Bailey (age 11) joined Becky and Jerianne.  Becky said:

For three days you can shop at many vendors, watch live events in the arena (even the horse Blue Jeans was there from Hannah Montana: The Movie), go to demonstrations, take workshops where you learn how to customize and repair Breyer models, and believe it or not, see actual “live model horse shows.”  Every evening there is a swap meet at the Holiday Inn where all 250 rooms, ballrooms, and lobbies are open and filled with toy horses.  The kids had a ball going from room to room looking for retired models to add to my collection.

Becky’s collecting started in childhood and continues today.  Since she has learned about eBay, there is no end in sight.  She also enjoys scrapbooking, when she can find time.  And we haven’t even talked about Christmas yet!  Click here to see her collection.