USEF Kicks-Off 2008 Annual Meeting in Louisville, KY
Friday, January 11, 2008
By Brian Sosby
Louisville, KY—United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) President David O’Connor officially kicked off the Federation’s annual meeting of the minds at the Downtown Marriott in Louisville, KY. The presentation of the USEF Awards for Media served as the start of a long weekend of activities. In a change of schedule, O’Connor chose to present his annual Keynote Address during the afternoon’s board meeting which was open to all attendees.
USEF Media Awards
Longtime equestrian journalist Nancy Jaffer, of Peapack, NJ, set a precedent as she took top honors in both the Photography and Single Article categories. While her photograph was dressage in nature, her article focused on the life of one of the equestrian eventing world’s most admired figures – Major General Jonathan (Jack) Burton. “I spoke to Jack last night, and asked him if he would attend the luncheon,” said Jaffer of the 88-year-old legend. “Unfortunately, he told me he would be judging a horse show!” She dedicated the honor to Burton.
Another duet of accolades was handed out to the Arabian Horse Association’s magazine Modern Arabian Horse. Covering the wide spectrum of the Arabian world, it picked up the Affiliate Publication of the Year Award and the Daniel P. Lenehan Memorial Trophy for Overall Excellence. AHA President Myron Krause accepted on behalf of the association’s publication.
“Thank you very much for honoring the hard work of our staff and our redesign,” said Krause.
Other awards presented were top prize in the Website category going to venerable Internet site Equisearch.com. The trophy for Specialized Publication was presented to the Kentucky Horse Park’s Discover Horses. Susan Harding was on-hand to accept the awards for both winners, and she was especially moved that the magazine had been recognized for its 15 years of working to educate and excite the public about horses and equestrian sport.
The Overall Equestrian Publication statue was presented to Young Horse magazine, devoted to the educating and exciting young riders across breeds and disciplines.
The awards portion of the luncheon concluded the President’s Award given to a journalist, publication, media outlet or group deserving of recognition for an outstanding achievement or contribution to the equestrian community through the use of media.
The winner of the 2008 President’s Award was one of our country’s leading newspapers – The Washington Post. Since it first began publication over a century ago, this paper has grown into one of the most recognized news organizations in the world. At the conclusion of the Pan American Games, the newspaper ran a series of articles about the wild successes of “The little pony that could” – Theodore O’Connor. Explaining to the world just how special this pony is and just how impressive his accomplishments were went a long way in not only promoting the sport of eventing, but in catching the general public’s attention and imagination in regards to the sport.
PHR Silver Stirrup Awards
The second of two award programs rounded out the day’s events in the ballroom of the Downtown Marriott Hotel as the Performance Horse Registry’s (PHR) Annual Silver Stirrup Awards were presented to the past year’s top registered owners and breeders of the Federation.
Members came from across the country to accept their awards, and one of the evening standouts was Saddlebred living legend Michelle Macfarlane of San Diego, CA. Time and again she rose to come forward and receive top honors across all long host of categories, including owner of the USEF Leading Saddlebred Sire (Chubasco co-owned with Ellen Scripps Davis), USEF Leading Saddlebred Owner and USEF Leading Saddlebred Breeder.
Emcee Charlotte Skinner and Ned Bonnie were on-hand to present the awards, and the evening’s sponsor—Joan Irvine Smith and The Oaks—were represented by Morton Smith, familiar sponsors of the PHR program and Silver Stirrups Awards.
To learn more about the 2008 USEF Annual Meeting and view a full schedule of events, visit www.usef.org.
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