Walking On Volume 3, Issue 1, January 2016 | Page 8

Member Spotlight . . .

Jean Brannon

My name is Jean Brannon, age 60,  and I’ve been riding and showing horses
since I was ten years old. Although my father was a surgeon, he didn’t buy me
a “show horse” like other doctors did for their kids. My first horse was a starving colt, born with one eye, and was purchased from one of my father’s patients for $85. My first horse was the most beautiful and wonderful horse in the
world! While the single stall barn was being built in my yard, the horse stayed
at the builder’s home which housed about 12 backyard type Tennessee Walking
Horses. I began riding them and loving them also. However, in order to have
a Tennessee Walking Horse my father said I had to sell my first horse and pay
for the next level of horse with that money. Only one horse was allowed and he
made it clear to me that he did not intend on paying anymore money for horses
for me. I had to improve my own horse to move on. It broke my heart but after
three years I sold the first horse for $125. After saving some money from odd
jobs, I purchased my first TWH, whose papers I’ve yet to see. Many lessons were
learned from Papa’s ways of teaching me business.
Having no horse trailer, I was forced to ride my horses to local horse
shows. Then I progressed to going to some close shows in state with the barn
builder and his Tennessee Walking Horses. We used a two horse trailer and
loaded another horse in the back of a pick up and secured him to the rails with a
harness. I felt like I was big stuff then!
The rest of the years prior to college I continued to improve the horse I had
and buy another one. When it was time for me to go to college (which I did kicking and screaming because I wanted to stay home and be a horse trainer) I had to
sell my horse and be without any horse while at school. The Lord provided and I
ended up riding one of my former horses that now lived in Auburn and I began
teaching his owner’s daughter to ride him.