Solidarity! Standing together! Speaking with one voice! “ENOUGH!” Today, March 24, 2018, hundreds of thousands of people , all across the United States stood together, marched together and said:” ENOUGH!” They joined , in unity with students, for the ‘March for Our Lives’ to say that “never again” would young people and children be killed in schools by gunfire. In Wellington Florida the equestrian community came together to Ride for Our lives. Olympian Meredith Michaels Beerbaum and Katherine Bellissimo, managing partner of Wellington Equestrian Partners that own and operate the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, joined together to organize a special ceremony that began at 6:00 pm. This was not just a faceless group. There were riders ranging in age from the youngest
to some well known veterans. ( if you recognize this rider , on the left, leave a comment below!!)
Some of the riders had made signs to give voice to what they felt.
Before 6 pm the riders began to assemble in the Rost arena at the PBIEC.
The march was to be led by two small equines owned by Katherine Bellissimo and wearing Ride For Our Lives T shirts.
Just after 6 pm the march began and ponies with the youngest riders and horses ridden by well known show jumpers went into the International Ring. They went past the VIP seating.
They circled past the Jumbo-tron and the stands.
There were marchers on foot as well as on horses.
The Chronicle of the Horse had asked for photos , with equestrians holding up the Ride For Our lives sign, to be submitted to be shown on the Jumbo-tron. One of the first up was of Nikki, at Standing Oak Farm in Palm City, where I am riding this winter. It is hard to see the Jumbo-tron image in the sunlight so I’ve included my original photo of Nikki and the Shire mare Clementine.
After I took Nikki’s photo yesterday she said: “I’m proud to be able to be part of this.”
I am proud too. Not only of Nikki but of the young people, the survivors of the shooting in Parkland, who are leading the USA in a new movement that, I hope, will bring an end to the killing of school children. Enough!
What a great initiative. Different for sure! Love how many people (and horses) showed up.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m so happy to see that so many people turned out for this demonstration. It’s so important. xx My favourite sign is the last one, ‘Books not bullets’. 🙂 xxx
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s my favorite too! Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Home made protest signs are the best. Keep up the pressure!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
OMG…George Morris??!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
YES! And wearing red framed glasses! And riding a rather spooky horse! You got it Alli.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Reblogged this on Dream Big, Dream Often.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you Danny for this re-blog!
LikeLike
I wish I could give this a dozen stars…
Thank you. Thank you for taking part in this, for posting about it, for the powerful pictures. Thank you to beautiful Nikki and gorgeous Clementine.
I’m a mother with two children in DoD school, where – oh the irony – they are as safe as one can be. But one of them is poised to go to college soon, and the other is not far behind. So I worry. Military brats both, tough under pressure, familiar with firearms, familiar with emergency protocols as a matter of course. Still I worry.
This should not be.
I should not wonder whether perhaps a university in Europe might be a better choice. I should not wonder whether my children will walk around campus with targets painted on their backs. I should not wonder whether I need to send them out there in my gear.
So… thank you. And if it’s not too much of a bother, please tell Ms Nikki, and everyone else you’d like, “thank you!” as well. 💖
LikeLiked by 2 people
Bless you for this comment! I hope that others will read it. I can understand your fears and concerns very well. I have two adult kids, now 32 and 30. I never had to face the threat of them being shot and killed either in school in Canada or university in England ( my son) or Canada( my daughter). But i can imagine what that would feel like. And i can imagine the absolute horror of getting the news of a shooting, running to the school, frantic to see if my child would come out alive or…..if my child was shot and killed i would never recover from it. The future, the promise, everything gone because some deranged person shot them. Killed them. It should never be. I really hope and pray that there will be change and that Parkland will be the last.
LikeLiked by 1 person
And i will pass on your appreciation to Nikki and all the other riders I took photos of.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much again 🤗
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is great to see the solidarity and the momentum this is gathering to bring about positive change – keep it going! 🤗💖
LikeLiked by 3 people
Yes it is encouraging to see young people rising and demanding change. .As a “child of the 60s” i remember the protests against the war in Vietnam. This is something very different but i support it 100%. Thank you for commenting!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad to see how many folks turned out for this demonstration.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes! The fact that it happened at all is so encouraging. The equestrian world is often seen as peopled with the very well off who insulate themselves from the problems and issues of the “real” world. So this was really wonderrful. Next weekend , for the closing event of the Winter Equestrian Festival, the choir from the Parkland high school will sing the National Anthem and 17 riders will stand in the center of the arena to represent the 17 who were killed.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes, yes, yes, yes, YESSSSSSS!
Bianissi should be proud, too!
You in FL may think your governor a bit daft…try living in South Carolina – ugh (see my latest post http://laurabrunolilly.com/governor-mcmaster-you-should-be-ashamed/ and for the record, I am not a southerner just living here for a short while)
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m actually Canadian and just spend the winter months in Florida so I usually try to remain silent about political issues but this was so important I had to record it with a post. Thanks for your comment!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Bravo Anne. Not worth much, but thoughts from down under are with you and all the marchers and riders.
LikeLiked by 4 people
Thank you Frank. It is worth a lot actually.
LikeLiked by 1 person