12 June , 1963
Breeders Elect Two Directors ; Set Registration , Member Marks
Election of two directors for threeyear terms , and reports showing record registration of horses and record enrollment of members featured the brief , harmonious May 11 annual meeting of the Tennessee Walking- Horse Breeder ' s & Exhibitor ’ s Assn , of America , Inc ., at handsome headquarters in Lewisburg , Tenn .
Executive Secretary H . Tom Fulton ' s financial report also showed the organization ' s treasury in the soundest position in its history . This report also showed substantial assets added to the balance sheet during the past year .
President S . W . Beech , Jr ., of Belfast , Tenn ., elected last year for a twoyear term , presided for the meeting attended by between 75 and 100 members , Secretary Fulton reported .
Ezell , Glenn , Turner Named
He said two former association presidents , Ed S . Ezell of Chapel Hill , Tenn ., and J . Glenn Turner of Dallas , Tex ., were unanimously elected for new terms as directors . They were the only nominees named by the nominating committee to appear on the proxy slips , and there were no other nominees on the proxies counted and no nominees offered from the floor , Fulton added .
Details of the financial statement and other formal reports were given by Mrs . Marianne Hawkins , secretary of the association for a number of years .
President Beech expressed appreciation to the membership for their whole hearted cooperation in all steps designed to further the interests . Tennessee Walking horse appreciation as a show animal and as a pleasure animal . He pledged continued efforts to further the breed and called upon all to make suggestions at any time .
Sharing the leadership with President Beech are First Vice-President W . W . Gill , Petersburg , Tenn .; Second Vice-President C . C . Turner , Broadway , Va .; Executive Committee Chairman John H . Amos , Franklin , Tenn .; additional directors Dr . W . F . Fessey , Nashville ; French Brantley , Manchester , Tenn .; Dr . W . V . Gamier , Bastrop , La .; Mr . Ez . eJl and Air . J . Glenn Turner .
At a meeting of directors Executive Secretary H . Tom Fulton was reelected for a term of three years . The terms of twro directors expire each year , this providing staggered terms for the six directors .
Breeders ’ Home Renovated
Mr . Fulton ' s report pointed out that the Breeders Association owns its own home within a half-block of the Courthouse Square in Lewisburg , is one of the most valuable tracts of land in the city , and the building has been extensively renovated during the past year at a cost of some § 4,000 . This work has enhanced the value of the properly considerably and the association has one of the nicest homes among breed registries of the nation , he pointed out . The association is one of the few horse breed registries to own its home .
Various committee reports showed the Tennessee Walking Horse industry is consistently on the upgrade ; that more Walking Horse classes are being placed in more shows .
Pleasure Class Emphasis Praised
“ We have had considerable interest shovm in our Pleasure Horse this year ; more Pleasure Horses are being shown and sold than ever before ; and quite a few people who have no desire to own or exhibit show horses are buying Pleasure Horses and exhibiting them in the shows ,” Mr . Fulton continued .
" We strongly urge all shows to constantly keep in mind the fact that the Pleasure Horse rider ’ s mount means as much to him as the horse of a rider or owner of a Show Horse means to him . I personally think that some of the shows are overlooking entry fees when they do not add Pleasure Classes , and also classes for juvenile or children riders .
“ Our juvenile riders today will be our adult riders and horse owners tomorrow ,” the Executive Secretary emphasized . If we do not keep these children interested and have classes for them to show in — they will probably lose interest , and then where will be our show classes in a few years — if the adult riders and owners disappear . We urge all shows to consider this fact when preparing their programs and brochures , and try to include classes for juvenile riders and pleasure riders in their shows . . . .
3,954 Horses Registered
Mrs . Hawkins ’ report on registrations showed a total of 3,954 horses for 1961 — this being the highest figure in the association ’ s 29-year history except for J947 ( while Walking Horses bred by the artificial insemination method were registered . The association ban against such registration took effect Sept . 1 , 1953 ).
' I ’ lie 1962 figure is a little over 600 more than the banner year of 1961 .
A gain of approximately 300 members was reported — which was declared indeed very gratifying — and that gives a total of 1800 paid-up members , the report showed .
President Beech said it had been “ very gratifying to him ” to receive the cooperation of all members during the year — and it was “ great to know that we had a fine organization of this size , with everyone striving for one aim — namely to see that the Tennessee Walking Horse is the top horse in the nation ,” the Executive Secretary added .
An Apology To
A 16-Year-Old Girl
The Voice Editor hereby apologizes to a 16-year-old girl , Charlotte Lee Neill of Florence , Ala .
Last summer , while the Editor was attempting lo write a Training Book that was abandoned ( in October ), he asked Charlotte lo write him a letter showing how she had improved her Walking Horse . Charlotte struck him as a most intelligent person — who had done a remarkable bit in training of her own horse . She was 15 at the time . Laier he met her at the Celebration and shook her hand .
In October — when the Editor became ill and others took over the major work of this magazine — the letter prepared for the Training Book appeared on the inside front cover page ol the November , 1962 , issue of the Voice . The copy omitied the name of the writer and naturally could not be included in the inside front cover article captioned “ Letter From a 15-Year- Old Girl .”
We apologize to Miss Neill for this omission — for which we personally were responsible . We have heard just lately that she rode in a horse show at Athens , Ala . and placed 2nd in the Pleasure Class and 3rd in Equitation on her “ Reb ," trained by herself .
Thai night she rode a 2-year-old from Wallace Dunn ’ s Stables near Shelbyville . The horse had been in training just six months . His name is El Cid and Charlotte had ridden him only two or three times . She placed 6th ( in the money ), riding in competition with many professional riders . She will ride “ El Cid ” in many shows this season . Charlotte is a descendant of pioneers in Tennesee Walking Horse history . BAG .