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Morgan standing in a foggy field

AMHA News from the 2023 UPHA National Conference

January 25, 2023

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The American Morgan Horse Association Annual Meeting of Members and Awards presentations were held at the Renaissance at SeaWorld Orlando in conjunction with the UPHA National Conference January 4-8th, 2023.  This location proved successful again, as many attendees brought their families for all the amenities the Renaissance and the Orlando area provided. Activities at the Convention included various forums with discussions on ongoing topics in the show horse industry as well as various meetings for the different membership sectors of the featured organizations.  The event kicked off with a Welcome Party at the Red Coconut Club at the Universal CityWalk which gave everyone a chance to catch up with various members of the industry. Awards were presented during two dinner celebrations: a luau-themed dinner on Thursday evening, and the Magical Awards Dinner and Gala, featuring various Disney characters, closing the activities Saturday evening.  AMHA presented several awards at the UPHA Awards Luncheon on Friday and held its Annual Awards Luncheon on Saturday afternoon. Overall, everyone in attendance had a great experience catching up with new and old friends, enjoying the sunshine in Florida, and celebrating all things horses! The Convention set the stage for the excitement of the 2023 show season.

Photos of the event are courtesy of Howard Schatzberg Photography

Check out the AMHA Annual Report HERE

 

Annual Meeting

The 2023 AMHA Annual Meeting of Members was held Friday, January 6th at the Renaissance at SeaWorld Orlando in conjunction with the UPHA National Conference. The meeting was open to the public for all interested in the future of the Morgan horse. USEF President Tom O’Mara spoke on the quality of the Grand National and World Championship Morgan Horse Show® as well as The Morgan Horse magazine. He stated the success in the Morgan horse is evident in the people who show their devotion to it time and time again.  Registry Committee Chair Harlan Grunden presented the Registry statistics which showed an increase in registrations and continuing growth of our breed. The Finance Committee report, presented by Steve Handy, showed that the Association is in good financial standing with plenty of future plans to promote the Morgan and continue the rise of memberships and registrations.  The AMHA Board presented outgoing President C.A. “Tony” Lee, III with a Certificate of Appreciation, an honor well deserved for everything he has done for the Morgan horse and the AMHA.

Prior to the start of the meeting, voting was open for in-person voting as well as proxy voting for those who were unable or chose not to place their votes electronically or via mail.  Voting closed at 10 AM and a quorum was confirmed for the election of the Eastern, Central, and Western Region Directors.  C. A. “Tony” Lee, III was elected for another term as the Eastern Region Director, Kelly Kraegel was elected for another term as the Central Region Director, and Dallas Bolen was elected to serve a second term as the Western Region Director.  It was also announced that the new Board of Directors will be led by Steve Handy as AMHA President with Tony Lee serving as Vice President. Ashleigh Wood will serve as our Vice President of Finance. 

For those unable to attend, all information presented at the Annual Meeting can be found HERE. (Please note, this is available to current members by logging into their online website account.)

 

Annual Awards

Congratulations to our 2022 AMHA Annual Award winners, many of which attended and  were recognized for their achievements with video slide shows provided by AMHA. These will be available on the website soon HERE.

Hall of Fame

Ann Anderson

Bill Parker

 

Breeders Hall of Fame

Arboria Morgans, Dale Farabee

Green Meads Farm, Jeffrey Morse

Hylee Farm, Jackie Sweeney

 

Professional Award

Shirley O'Gorman

 

Show Horse Hall of Fame

Contagious

Longview Sundance

Montana Jubilee CH

WH Zimbabwe

 

Person (People) of the Year

The Superior Sale Sweepstakes Committee

 

Golden Reins

Mary Cockriel

Kurt Hufferd

Dwayne Knowles

Michael Pereillo, Jr.

 

Cecil Brown Sportsmanship

Mike Goebig

 

Dr. Albert Lucine Promoter

Lori Sargeant

 

Young Person

Adam Lagosz

 

International

Gunnar and Ann-Sofie Lidmer (Sweden)

 

Therapy Horse

JVT’S Passion

 

Judges Service Milestone

Cheri Barber - 40 Years of Service

Larry Bolen - 40 Years of Service (2021) 

Nancy Becker - 30 Years of Service

Jonalyn Gwinup - 30 Years of Service

Joyce Swanson - 30 Years of Service

David Earehart - 25 Years of Service

Tami Johnson - 25 Years of Service

 

AMHA Clubs

Iowa Morgan Horse Association - Champion - 2022 Promotional Event of the Year

Show Me Morgan Horse Club - Reserve Champion - 2022 Promotional Event of the Year

Show Me Morgan Horse Club - Champion - 2022 Educational Event of the Year

In addition to the awards above, AMHA also honored those receiving Star Awards and Open Competition Awards!

STAR AWARD RESULTS

OPEN COMPETITION RESULTS

Learn more about the AMHA Annual Awards presented HERE.

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