I recently read a book called “God Winks” which is a collection of short stories illustrating how God works in mysterious ways – and how he shows up for us through little “winks” in our everyday lives.
This is one of those stories: the tale of how my childhood horse and I reconnected after more than 15 years of being apart, and how I came to know the team and mission behind Bergen County Horse Rescue (BCHR).
I grew up in New Jersey but now call the San Francisco Bay Area home. My life, like many of yours, is hectic with the general chaos that comes with having a travel-heavy career combined with raising two young children.
When I was little, horses were my passion, and when I entered junior high, my parents bought me a Dutch warmblood named Konrad. Konrad was my best friend during those awkward middle school years and continued to be there for me as I found my confidence in high school. When I left for college, Konrad moved on to his next owner as Georgetown University did not have a riding team and I knew Konrad needed the daily love and attention that only a local owner could give him.
As my life progressed – through college, career, marriage and motherhood - I thought about Konrad often and always wished I could find him again. After many Facebook messages and triangulating through friends of friends, I got in touch with Annie a few years ago. Annie also owned Konrad during her childhood and stayed in touch with his current owner. She visited Konrad a few times each year and was kind enough to send me pictures of her visits.
Our beloved Goldie
Fast forward to Christmas last year (2018), when my mother-in-law (knowing my love of horses) suggested we take my daughter for a tour of a horse rescue where one of her friends, Jen, volunteered. We spent the afternoon walking around the snow-covered fields at BCHR, saying hello to various horses. We all particularly fell in love with one horse, Goldie, who was 43 years old and was kind enough to allow my daughter to skip in circles around him and pet him. We learned that Goldie was one of the rescue’s oldest and most beloved horses. I was in awe of their mission, caring for of 23 horses who otherwise would have been put to sleep. However, I had no idea that this mission would soon hit close to home.
In a perfect example of God winking, only three months later I heard from Annie that Konrad’s current owner was selling her barn and was unable to find him a new home for Konrad given his age (almost 30 years old!). Remembering my visit, I emailed the BCHR general mailbox and shared my story. Little did I know, this email was received on the VERY same day the rescue lost Goldie, one of its oldest and most beloved horses. And again, God winks.
The team at BCHR acted quickly and made a place for Konrad (who also would have been put to sleep without them). I had the pleasure of being there in person to welcome him to his new home, which is only five minutes from where my mother-in-law lives. Now, whenever we visit our family back East, BCHR is my first stop.
Konrad is thriving! Words cannot express my gratitude to the entire BCHR team for all of the time they spend making BCHR the special place it is today.
While I wish I lived closer and could volunteer my time and be there each week, I wanted to do something to support this fantastic mission from across the country. Today, I am honored to kick off BCHR’s holiday fundraiser with the goal of raising $10,000 to fund the much-needed new fencing around the property and pastures. If you are able to, I ask you to please join me in supporting a very special sanctuary for horses like Konrad by donating below.
With appreciation,
Kristy Duchak
*Please be sure to indicate the funds are for the “Holiday Fundraiser” in the comments section during your checkout process.
