Golden Hills Pony Club celebrated its 3rd year at the annual
awards potluck Dec. 9 The club’s 23 members live in Gilroy, Morgan
Hill, San Martin, Hollister, Salinas and San Jose, and range in age
from 6 to 18.
Golden Hills Pony Club celebrated its 3rd year at the annual awards potluck Dec. 9 The club’s 23 members live in Gilroy, Morgan Hill, San Martin, Hollister, Salinas and San Jose, and range in age from 6 to 18.
Honored were: Renee Sanders, founder and district commissioner of GHPC – National Volunteer Recognition Award; Anne Walker, Pony Clubber of the Year; Marina Bireley and Keeley Mahan, Pony Club Spirit; Julie Pieracci, Most Improved; Anastasia Carson, D Horse Management; Claire Rice, C Horse Management; Scott Spano, Perseverance Award. GHPC is the local affiliate of the United States Pony Club. Along with an emphasis on helping its members learn to ride and care for horses, Pony Club promotes teamwork, a sense of responsibility, safety, good moral judgment and self-confidence. USPC was founded in 1954 as a nonprofit national youth organization to teach riding and horsemanship through a formal educational program. Many of the nation’s top equestrians, including most of our Olympic Equestrian team members, have Pony Club roots. Activities are English-riding based.
To earn ratings, clubbers passed examinations that tested horsemanship skills and knowledge. Each of the Pony Club rating levels, beginning with D1 and proceeding to A, is more difficult than the preceding one, and requires Pony Club members to learn more about horses and their care and to become increasingly accomplished riders and teachers of riding and horse care to younger members. The top rating, ‘A,’ is reached by fewer than one in 300 and denotes a highly competent and knowledgeable horseperson.
Ratings awarded were: D1 Certificates, Marina Bireley, Erin Budrow, Adam Carson, Andrew Carson, Blake Duarte, Aryton Littel, Jacquelyn Nelson, Madison Nelson, Alyssa Newsone, Erika Otahal, Eleanor Persing, Jesse Persing, Margaret Persing, Aurelia Phillipe, Jessica Pieracci, Julie Pieracci, Scott Spano; D2 Certificates: Brianna Carson, Erika Otahal, Margaret Persing, Jessica Pieracci, Julie Pieracci, Aurelia Phillipe; D3 Certificate: Julie Pieracci; C1 Certificates: Claire Rice, Savanna Sanders, Shelby Sanders, Anne Walker; C2 Certificate: Anne Walker.
Details: 776-3113.
Toys For Tots donation locations
Donations are still requested for the ongoing United States Marine Corps Reserve Toys For Tots effort in Morgan Hill and Gilroy. Donations are lowest for the children ages 10 to 16 years old.
In Gilroy, Edward Jones Investments, Gilroy Elks Lodge, Gilroy Gardens, Realty World Associates, The Mortgage Net, West Coast Martial Arts, Gilroy Toyota, ConAgra Foods, Australian Tanning Company and Healthy Inspirations are awaiting toy donations.
In Morgan Hill many local businesses are available to accept your donation of new, unwrapped toys. A few of the locations are: Coldwell Banker, BookSmart, Santa Teresa Dental, Lacerda Chiropractic and Cochrane Road Self-Storage.
Send digest items to City Editor Robert Airoldi at ed****@****ic.com.
