might not last another three years. But Pestana was already hooked on the place. She and her husband had moved from Boston to Williamstown to find an affordable location to board her horse, a black and white paint named Jack who’ s now 22. Marshalling her decades-long background as a business management consultant, she met with the owners of the farm and presented her idea for running it as a nonprofit.“ I just wanted a place to keep my horse,” she remembers with a chuckle.“ I never thought three years later, I’ d be running the place.” The farm was granted nonprofit status in December of 2021, and Pestana has been going full-speed into raising funds.
Two Great Heroes to the Rescue
About this time, two New Yorkers, Gary Knisely and his wife, Jeannie Knigin, decided to move to the Berkshires. Knisely was the owner of an executive search firm in Manhattan. Knigin, a native Texan, had spent more than 50 years at the highest levels of Morgan Stanley. The house they chose in Lenox was once part of Undermountain Farm property, located right across the street, and was split from the rest of the property to sell separately.
Like any new homeowners, they were interested in preserving the pastoral beauty in the area they bought. " The last thing Lenox needed was a development of McMansions taking the place of this beautiful natural environment," says Kbisely, an energetic septuagenarian possessed of a charming twinkle in his eye. When the Sprague family gifted the farm to the new non-profit, the only provision was that Gary accept the role of Chairman of the Board. He did, and immediately set out to successfully raise over a million dollars with his neighbors to revive the farm.“ We weren’ t looking for a project but this one grabbed us,” says Knigin, whose slight Texas twang underscores her formidableness as a business woman.“ People think we own the farm,” adds Knisely.“ We definitely don’ t. We own the property across the street
from it. We just felt it would be better for the entire community if we pitched in to save this absolute gem of a farm which is one of the last working gentleman farms in the area.” Pitching in is an understatement. The Knisley ' s and their neighbors raised over $ 1 million allowing for all new fencing, making necessary repairs to the buildings and hiring a trail boss, a development person for future fundraising, as well as setting the foundation for equine therapy programs.
Galloping Toward the Future
Today, HomeFarm at Undermountain has 24 horses and ponies and serves as home for 10 privately owned horses boarded there.“ Four of our horses came with the farm,” explains Pestana, giving a tour of the newly refurbished stables.“ The remaining 21 are rescue horses we’ ve rehabilitated.” The farm features two houses and four barns, the largest of which is over 14,000 square feet with 20 horse stalls. Another
Chief technology. Adjunct of. Family eviv.
Y unique life, planned.
Understanding what people are passionate about is how we help them plan for what’ s most important. Backed by sophisticated resources, a Raymond James financial advisor gets to know you and everything that makes your life uniquely complex. That’ s Life Well Planned.
DAVID RICE, CFP ® Vice President, Investments
DARRELL M. COLVIN, MBA, AAMS ® Financial Advisor
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Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Center for Financial Planning, Inc. owns and licenses the certification marks CFP ®, Certified Financial Planner ®, and CFP ®( with plaque design) in the United States to Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., which authorizes individuals who successfully complete the organization’ s initial and ongoing certification requirements to use the certification marks. © 2025 Raymond James & Associates, Inc., member New York Stock Exchange / SIPC. 25-BR3EH-0048 TA 4 / 25
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