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Joe and Marion receive 2009 NYSMHS Promotional Award

We were honored to receive this award at the 2009 NYSMHS awards banquet. This award recognizes the individual who has done the most to promote Morgan Horses in New York. Specific criteria include both organized and informal promotional activities at the club and individual level, participation in club events, media communications, and efforts to make Morgan converts outside the existing equine community. (Photo courtesy of Valerie Low)

2009 Seaway Admiral "Willie" Award Recipients

On the evening of December 5, 2009, my husband, Joe and I, together with Angela and Destiny Gerrity, made the very first presentation of “Willie’s Award,” formally identified as the “NYSMHS’ Seaway Admiral ‘Willie’ Junior Exhibitor Award.”

After the humane euthanizing of Seaway Admiral on December 2, 2008, at the age of 16, establishing an award in his memory seemed to Joe and me to be the most appropriate way to honor a horse that spent his entire life in a show ring.

Most of “Willie’s” show credentials were placings in the Junior Exhibitor division. So the logical route for us was to establish a unique award for that division. The award, given in his name, is earned by a team, consisting of a single horse and rider. Recognition for the award is achieved by attaining the highest number of points in the Junior Exhibitor Division for the show season. The competitions given consideration for the award are restricted to the classes offered at three selected NYSMHS shows. For 2009, the shows were WNY, Amateur, and NY Regional. For 2010, the competitions will be restricted to NYS Breeders, WNY, Amateur, and Regional, with NYS Breeders replacing WNY in the calculations if the exhibitor is unable to compete at WNY. Consideration for the award occurs automatically through class registrations at each of the chosen shows, and not by application. The formula used in computing values for class placement is the same as that used by the NYSMHS High Point Committee for all awards. Additionally, only those Junior Exhibitors who are members of NYSMHS are eligible for this award.

Our quests to find a trophy for the award lead us far and wide. In the end, we contacted Anderson Bass of Churchwell’s Jewelers, a family owned and operated jewelry store established in 1905, and located in Wilson, North Carolina. Anderson Bass, an award winning designer and goldsmith, specializes in designing and manufacturing very high quality nautical and equestrian jewelry.

Working with Anderson, the award is a limited edition piece, like the horse it honors, who was the product of a one time only cross. The award, a lapel pin, resembles the rosette ribbon awarded to those placing in a class. Cast in silver, enameled in blue or red to denote the Champion and Reserve Champion, and edged in gold, with an embossed head of a Morgan in the center of the rosette, the pin bears an inscription which includes the year, NYSMHS Seaway Admiral, either Champion or Reserve Champion, followed by “Willie’s Award.”

The two recipients of the 2009 Champion and Reserve Champion award were respectively; Debra Jean Downs, riding under the Bramblebush Banner aboard the gelding, Evan Final Lee. The Reserve Champion, Julia Strier, riding under the banner of Lingering Hills Stables aboard the gelding, TTE T Time Talisman. (Photos courtesy of Valerie Low)

Our two honorees are the first members of what is to be a select group of riders, easily recognized by the distinctive award they wear.

We would like to take this opportunity to extend our congratulations to all of the NYSMHS Junior Exhibitors on their many successes realized during the 2009 Show Season with their Morgans. We would also like to recognize Patti Waring for her efforts in identifying this year’s recipients; thank you, Patti, for your and your committee’s thoroughness in reviewing all of the show documents. Your guidance and support were very much appreciated. A final note of thanks goes to Anderson Bass, who took an idea and turned it into a reality.

Those seeking additional information regarding the Seaway Admiral “Willie” Junior Exhibitor Award can access information on the NYSMHS’ web site and in the prize list for each of the chosen shows. We look forward to your participation in the selection process for “Willie’s Award” in the 2010 Show Season.