Walking On Volume 3, Issue 4, April 2016 | Page 6

Member Spotlight . . . A Conversation With 1. Where did you grow up? I was born in Knoxville, TN, but my family moved to Georgia when I was two years old. We lived in Decatur, GA for a couple of years then moved to the tiny town of Powder Springs, GA where I grew up. Powder Springs is near Marietta, Ga which is a suburb of Atlanta. My husband and I now live in Monroe, Ga which is near Athens -- home of the University of Georgia. 2. When and how were you introduced to Tennessee Walking Horses? This is hard to believe, but I was first introduced to the Tennessee Walking Horse breed when I was in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I met an older gentleman who had a TWH mare and needed someone to ride her. I enthusiastically volunteered and was hooked immediately. A short time later I decided to purchase my own TWH and quickly found out that I didn’t know nearly enough about riding and training my new horse. As fate would have it, I decided to board my new horse in the only TWH barn in northeast Oklahoma where I met someone who gave me a lot of valuable knowledge about TWHs and eventually became my husband! 3. What are the names of your immediate family members? Are any of your family members involved in the breed? My husband, Johnny Paul, has been involved with TWH’s since he was a child. He grew up in middle Tennessee and has been around horses all his life. After he was discharged from the Air Force, Johnny became a blacksmith and apprenticed under wellknown farrier Gene Jordan. After a few years, Johnny decided to pursue a career in manufacturing and sales, but continued to shoe horses on th R6