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Each year Harvest View Stables has been holding some sort of holiday fund raiser for a
charitable organization, and this year we're going to put a horsey spin on things. When my
friend, Valerie, and I went to Rolex in April, we were delighted to watch Melissa Hunsberger
(originally from Wyomissing) and her horse, Just Fun Stuff, compete and go clear on those
intimidating courses. Melissa is 26 years old and comes from a non-horsey family, and she's
gotten to the top of the three-day-eventing world through lots of grit, determination and hard
work. When Valerie and I went to the Fair Hill *** in October, we were excited to see Melissa
and Fun again, and I took a Harvest View T-shirt along for her, thinking she'd like the "We do
the fun stuff!" connection.
Sadly, though, Melissa and Fun had a terrible fall at the fence where Valerie and I were
posted as out riders. Melissa is fine, but Fun suffered a fractured scapula and is on stall rest,
and his future is uncertain. In the meantime, Melissa, who has very limited finances and no
corporate sponsors (unlike some of the bigger-name eventers) is saddled with huge vet bills
on top of having to find another young prospect to bring along while Fun recovers. This got
me thinking...
How about the barn that does "the fun stuff" hosts a fund raiser for Melissa and Just Fun
Stuff? We will channel all monies through The American Horse Trials Foundation, a
non-profit organization set up specifically to help event riders such as Melissa. Chandra Mast
has graciously permitted us to hold an on-line silent auction on www.lancasterhorse.com in
December. We'll follow the auction with a weekend of "Fun Stuff for Fun Stuff" at HVS in
January.
If you would like to donate any goods and/or services to the silent auction, please let me
know. Items need not be horse-related and could be as simple as a batch of homemade
cookies. So far, we have commitments for riding lessons from two upper-level eventers,
capping fees for guests of the Beaufort Hunt, homemade horse treats, a limited-edition art
print, homemade bread, handmade jewelry, and a digital scrapbook, among other things.
If you'd like to contribute something for the silent auction or to a raffle, please let me know
asap. This will be an extra fun event, and I'd love to have as many people involved as
possible. Thanks in advance for all of your help!
Cindy
charitable organization, and this year we're going to put a horsey spin on things. When my
friend, Valerie, and I went to Rolex in April, we were delighted to watch Melissa Hunsberger
(originally from Wyomissing) and her horse, Just Fun Stuff, compete and go clear on those
intimidating courses. Melissa is 26 years old and comes from a non-horsey family, and she's
gotten to the top of the three-day-eventing world through lots of grit, determination and hard
work. When Valerie and I went to the Fair Hill *** in October, we were excited to see Melissa
and Fun again, and I took a Harvest View T-shirt along for her, thinking she'd like the "We do
the fun stuff!" connection.
Sadly, though, Melissa and Fun had a terrible fall at the fence where Valerie and I were
posted as out riders. Melissa is fine, but Fun suffered a fractured scapula and is on stall rest,
and his future is uncertain. In the meantime, Melissa, who has very limited finances and no
corporate sponsors (unlike some of the bigger-name eventers) is saddled with huge vet bills
on top of having to find another young prospect to bring along while Fun recovers. This got
me thinking...
How about the barn that does "the fun stuff" hosts a fund raiser for Melissa and Just Fun
Stuff? We will channel all monies through The American Horse Trials Foundation, a
non-profit organization set up specifically to help event riders such as Melissa. Chandra Mast
has graciously permitted us to hold an on-line silent auction on www.lancasterhorse.com in
December. We'll follow the auction with a weekend of "Fun Stuff for Fun Stuff" at HVS in
January.
If you would like to donate any goods and/or services to the silent auction, please let me
know. Items need not be horse-related and could be as simple as a batch of homemade
cookies. So far, we have commitments for riding lessons from two upper-level eventers,
capping fees for guests of the Beaufort Hunt, homemade horse treats, a limited-edition art
print, homemade bread, handmade jewelry, and a digital scrapbook, among other things.
If you'd like to contribute something for the silent auction or to a raffle, please let me know
asap. This will be an extra fun event, and I'd love to have as many people involved as
possible. Thanks in advance for all of your help!
Cindy
| Project Fun Stuff! |
Fun Stuff - Part One
Fun Stuff - Part Two
The second phase of our Fun Stuff Project will take place at the barn the weekend of January
19th and 20th. On the afternoon of 1/19, we'll hold a special benefit Games on Horseback
Fun Show to raise funds for Melissa and Fun. Entries for the Fun Show will be $30/rider, and
all checks should be made out to The American Horse Trials Foundation. In conjunction with
the show, we'll have various demonstrations, a tack-cleaning booth staffed by our students,
and a refreshment stand. All proceeds from the show, the snacks, and various raffles and
games will go directly to Melissa and Fun via the American Horse Trials Foundation.
We're open to suggestions for fun activities at the barn, so if you have any ideas, please let
Cindy know. If you'd like to donate raffle items or services for that day, we'd be most grateful.
We'll also be looking for food donations for our refreshment stand. We'll have a sign-up sheet
at the barn for all donations for our fun day. We plan to have commemorative t-shirts available
for purchase, and Melissa will be joining us to have some HVS-style fun and to sign some
autographs.
On Sunday, 1/20, Melissa will be teaching a clinic. HVS riders will have first option to ride in
group lessons with Melissa, and once everyone has had an opportunity to sign up, if there
are any slots left, we'll open it to outside riders. The cost for the clinic is $100/rider and
$15/auditor. Please make checks payable to the American Horse Trials Foundation. Talk
with Cindy to reserve your spot in the clinic.
Lastly, during the month of December, Cindy will be offering to our boarders clipping and
mane-pulling services. All monies generated from these services will be directed to Melissa,
so if you're interested in having your horse spruced up for the holidays, get in touch with
Cindy.
19th and 20th. On the afternoon of 1/19, we'll hold a special benefit Games on Horseback
Fun Show to raise funds for Melissa and Fun. Entries for the Fun Show will be $30/rider, and
all checks should be made out to The American Horse Trials Foundation. In conjunction with
the show, we'll have various demonstrations, a tack-cleaning booth staffed by our students,
and a refreshment stand. All proceeds from the show, the snacks, and various raffles and
games will go directly to Melissa and Fun via the American Horse Trials Foundation.
We're open to suggestions for fun activities at the barn, so if you have any ideas, please let
Cindy know. If you'd like to donate raffle items or services for that day, we'd be most grateful.
We'll also be looking for food donations for our refreshment stand. We'll have a sign-up sheet
at the barn for all donations for our fun day. We plan to have commemorative t-shirts available
for purchase, and Melissa will be joining us to have some HVS-style fun and to sign some
autographs.
On Sunday, 1/20, Melissa will be teaching a clinic. HVS riders will have first option to ride in
group lessons with Melissa, and once everyone has had an opportunity to sign up, if there
are any slots left, we'll open it to outside riders. The cost for the clinic is $100/rider and
$15/auditor. Please make checks payable to the American Horse Trials Foundation. Talk
with Cindy to reserve your spot in the clinic.
Lastly, during the month of December, Cindy will be offering to our boarders clipping and
mane-pulling services. All monies generated from these services will be directed to Melissa,
so if you're interested in having your horse spruced up for the holidays, get in touch with
Cindy.
| If you have any additional ideas for our Fun Stuff Project, please get in touch with Cindy. We're open to all suggestions and hope to make a significant contribution to Melissa via the American Horse Trials Foundation. Thank you for your help! |
Update!
We're very excited to report that our On-line Silent Auction raised $2,750 for Melissa and Fun.
Everyone was extremely generous with both their auction donations and their bids on the donated
items and services. We're off to a great start toward our goal of raising $5K.
The next phase of the project will be our Fun Stuff Weekend at the barn. We'll be holding our Games
on Horseback Fun Show for lesson students on Saturday, 1/19 at 1 o'clock. In the morning, we'll be
holding another silent auction, raffles, a KISSING BOOTH where you can smooch our miniature
donkey, a tack-cleaning booth and food concessions. We'll also have a body work demonstration by
Gwen Edsall of Hawk's Haven Horses, a braiding demo and a discussion of things the judge looks
for in the hunter and equitation rings led by "r" judge, Meg Black. Additionally, we'll have Fun Stuff
t-shirts for sale, and Melissa will be here to autograph them. We'll also be raffling off one of Fun's
shoes that he wore at Rolex Kentucky! If you have any other ideas for fun activities on Saturday,
please let Cindy know, and we'll get them on the schedule. If you'd like to donate items or services to
the silent auction, please get in touch with Cindy about that, also.
On Sunday of Fun Stuff Weekend, Melissa will be teaching a clinic at the barn. If weather permits,
we'll ride outside, but with January being what it is, we may be restricted to the indoor. If you are a
HVS lesson student or instructor and would like to ride in the clinic, please sign up with Cindy.
Please make all checks payable to The American Horse Trials Foundation.
We're very excited to report that our On-line Silent Auction raised $2,750 for Melissa and Fun.
Everyone was extremely generous with both their auction donations and their bids on the donated
items and services. We're off to a great start toward our goal of raising $5K.
The next phase of the project will be our Fun Stuff Weekend at the barn. We'll be holding our Games
on Horseback Fun Show for lesson students on Saturday, 1/19 at 1 o'clock. In the morning, we'll be
holding another silent auction, raffles, a KISSING BOOTH where you can smooch our miniature
donkey, a tack-cleaning booth and food concessions. We'll also have a body work demonstration by
Gwen Edsall of Hawk's Haven Horses, a braiding demo and a discussion of things the judge looks
for in the hunter and equitation rings led by "r" judge, Meg Black. Additionally, we'll have Fun Stuff
t-shirts for sale, and Melissa will be here to autograph them. We'll also be raffling off one of Fun's
shoes that he wore at Rolex Kentucky! If you have any other ideas for fun activities on Saturday,
please let Cindy know, and we'll get them on the schedule. If you'd like to donate items or services to
the silent auction, please get in touch with Cindy about that, also.
On Sunday of Fun Stuff Weekend, Melissa will be teaching a clinic at the barn. If weather permits,
we'll ride outside, but with January being what it is, we may be restricted to the indoor. If you are a
HVS lesson student or instructor and would like to ride in the clinic, please sign up with Cindy.
Please make all checks payable to The American Horse Trials Foundation.
| Pre-Order your Sammy Sandwiches! As part of our Fun Stuff Weekend, we'll be selling subs and pretzel sandwiches that will be available on Saturday, January 19th. You may fill out the order form posted at the barn, or get in touch with Cindy to order. Your choices are: 8" Italian Sub Turkey and American Pretzel Sandwich Ham and Swiss Pretzel Sandwich Sandwiches are $4.00 each. |
Just wanted thank everyone who supported our Fun Stuff Project via the silent auction on www.LancasterHorse.com in
December and our Fun Weekend at the barn on January 19th and 20th. I am simply overwhelmed by everyone's
generosity and support, as is Melissa. When we started out our brainstorming for this project, I wasn't sure what to
expect, but I had in my mind some kind of pie-in-the-sky goal of raising $5,000 for Melissa and Fun. While I don't have
the final, final numbers, as we still have some $ trickling in from t-shirt sales and the silent auction, the preliminary
numbers indicate that we've exceeded that goal by more than $1,000!
I can't even begin to tell you how thrilled I am, nor how wonderful it was to have so many people here at the barn on such
a cold, cold weekend, just to support Melissa and Fun. It really is amazing what can happen when folks join together for
a great cause, and I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for helping make this project such a huge success. It
was such fun having Melissa with us for the weekend, and I'm sure that after meeting her, everyone is even happier to
have had the opportunity to help out such a lovely young woman. She so appreciates everyone's help and support, and I
know that all of us wish her nothing but the best of luck in dealing with Fun's recovery.
Thanks so much...I'm absolutely thrilled.
Fondly, Cindy
December and our Fun Weekend at the barn on January 19th and 20th. I am simply overwhelmed by everyone's
generosity and support, as is Melissa. When we started out our brainstorming for this project, I wasn't sure what to
expect, but I had in my mind some kind of pie-in-the-sky goal of raising $5,000 for Melissa and Fun. While I don't have
the final, final numbers, as we still have some $ trickling in from t-shirt sales and the silent auction, the preliminary
numbers indicate that we've exceeded that goal by more than $1,000!
I can't even begin to tell you how thrilled I am, nor how wonderful it was to have so many people here at the barn on such
a cold, cold weekend, just to support Melissa and Fun. It really is amazing what can happen when folks join together for
a great cause, and I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for helping make this project such a huge success. It
was such fun having Melissa with us for the weekend, and I'm sure that after meeting her, everyone is even happier to
have had the opportunity to help out such a lovely young woman. She so appreciates everyone's help and support, and I
know that all of us wish her nothing but the best of luck in dealing with Fun's recovery.
Thanks so much...I'm absolutely thrilled.
Fondly, Cindy