Ever since I was a little girl, I have had a passion for horses. I always dreamed ofriding the champion horses in shows and have my wall covered in blue ribbons. I would own my own training stable along with several horses. Maybe even board horses.
Whenever my family went on Sunday drives in the country (gas was only 25 cents per gallon at the time), or we went on vacation, if there was a roadside pony ride (yes, there were such things years ago), we had to stop so I could ride.
I grew up in the Bronx, NY, believe it or not, and moved to Pennsylvania at the age of 23 with my husband. I was determined to fulfill my dream. After moving to the Lehigh Valley, and with extensive searching, I found a wonderful German instructor/trainer. She saw I was serious about learning everything about horses, so, she took me under her wing, taught me English riding, a lot of information on horses, plus lots more. She even helped me find my first horse, break him (he was an unbroken 3 year old ½ Arab, ½ Quarter Horse who only knew how to lunge) and train him. I was ecstatic since I wanted to learn how to break and train horses, too, although this was my first and last time I broke a horse. Now that is a different story in itself, which I'll share with you at another time.
Since my instructor went above and beyond what a regular instructor would do, I wanted to give back to the horse community in some way with sharing my knowledge.
As time went on and my family grew, both my son and daughter enjoyed horses and I ended up getting involved with them. And so my horse family grew, too.
The kids were involved in 4H, the U.S. Pony Club and showing. So, mom (me) ended up volunteering as an assistant 4H leader, District Commissioner of a local chapter of the U.S. Pony Club, helping out at the different events and being a horse show mom. The more I got involved, the more I learned about the horse world.
All during this time I wanted so much to work with horses. When I had my farm, I taught private riding lessons to beginners, which I loved. It was just difficult for me to squeeze this into my busy schedule with the kids. So, I only had a few students because of it.
While continuing my education with horses (there is always something new to learn) by reading books and articles, attending seminars and lectures, clinics and lessons, I continued looking for jobs to keep me in the horse world. Even though my volunteer work kept me in the horse world, it did not pay my bills. I tried my hand at being a stable hand, judging low level and 4H hunter shows, horse appraiser, none of which really worked out for one reason or another. I guess it wasn't my calling.
When I remarried, my new husband suggested I go for my real estate license. I thought about it and decided to try my hand at it. Why not? I tried a lot of other occupations. What's one more?
While attending classes, I thought about it some more. "You know what?" I thought to myself. "With all the horse knowledge I have, I can specialize in horse properties." That made perfect sense to me. I remember when I searched for a horse property for our family, the agent I used had no clue what a horse property was. What I got was: "It's 7 acres and zoned for horses." That did not mean it was horse property. For example, a mountain or a swamp are not horse friendly properties.
There are a lot of things to consider when buying a horse property. Township zoning regulations and the lay of the land are just a couple of things to keep in mind. Lots of research needs to be done.
When I realized there was a need for a horse property specialist in real estate, I found my calling. I am still involved in the horse world with fellow horse people and I am able to help them, also, using my years of horse knowledge, not to mention that I get to see the sturdy architecture of the older barns.
It's a great feeling helping other fellow horse people find the right homes and farms for their individual purposes, and seeing them happy in their new homes and farms.
If you are interested in buying or selling, or even investing, in rural or horse property, large or small, or even if you want to get into the real estate field, contact Brigita McKelvie at Keller Williams.
Happy horses make happy owners, which makes everyone happy.
Here is the activity for September 2009 for the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania:
The last phase is stadium jumping. Here the horse and rider jump a course of stadium jumps without knocking down any rails or having any refusals or falls. 
