Greetings From SuzAnne

     Autumn is my favorite time of year to be on a good horse, cruising down a forest trail deep in Montana’s backcountry. The vivid yellow hues of the larch needles and aspen leaves mixed with the rich, velvety greens of the firs and pines all set against a azure sky are as intoxicating to the eye as the crispness of the cool autumn air is to the lungs – add a little “termination dust” (an Alaskan term for the first snows of winter that terminate summer) on the high peaks and you have Montana at its picture perfect best! It’s a time when you can catch a glimpse of wildlife as they busy themselves with putting on fat and finding a mate before the winter sets in, when the last warm days invite you for an afternoon nap in the falling leaves, and when the first cold nights demand a hot drink around a campfire. Yes, it is a magical time of year and a time of change. Dunrovin celebrates this season with some changes of its own - a new program, several new staff members, and some new equine friends.

New Program:

     In response to numerous requests for a children’s program, Dunrovin is initiating a Dunrovin Ranch Family Adventure Club. We invite families to make Dunrovin Ranch their home away from home for all kinds of ranch activities – from horse care, horseback riding, lessons, mountain trail rides and pack trips to river recreation with canoes, kayaks, and fishing gear, to wildlife watching, identification, and photography, to arts and crafts that draw from nature, to growing a vegetable garden and learning how to prepare and store the harvest or growing a flower garden to artfully arrange the blossoms in a homemade vase. We will involve teachers, horse trainers, artists, canoeists, fishers, and experts of all sorts to create adventures that celebrate all that Dunrovin and western Montana have to offer.

     We call it a family club to capture two objectives of the program – to provide Bitterroot Valley families with opportunities for affordable and safe opportunities for quality outdoor recreation and education; and to develop a Dunrovin Family in which individuals can come together to enjoy each other, the animals, and nature through shared experiences in a supportive, enriching environment. We are kicking off the program this fall with a four week children’s horsemanship program and some autumn Bitterroot River canoe trips. This winter we will develop a wide range of activities and opportunities to offer next season through the club. Please contact us if you are interested in visiting Dunrovin and learning more about the club.

New Staff:

     While we miss our former ranch manager, Jessie Rogers, who recently took a new job as the marketing director at AniMeals, we are excited to have Laura Bosak step into that position. Laura is actually a rehire for Dunrovin Ranch and Research, LLC. Last year she previously worked primarily for the research end of the business and occasionally helped out with ranch marketing. Laura is a women of many talents and interests so be sure to read more about her in the staff section of this newsletter. For the immediate future, Laura will serve as ranch manager; but she is already expressed interest in pursuing additional work and studies in the human dimension in natural resource that will involve her again in the research side of our business. I am certain that she will be here a long time; and I am just as certain that she will wear many different hats and do beautifully in each!

     The Family Adventure Club will bring several new people to Dunrovin to help us build the club and offer a wide range of activities. Hattie Bollom will serve as the ranch counselor for our children’s horsemanship program; Alan Burgmuller will serve as the ranch river recreation counselor; and Todd Earp will work with us to offer club members pack trips into the Great Burn Wilderness Study Area. We look forward to getting to know these individuals better and will feature them in a future newsletter.

New Animals:

     If you read the previous newsletter, you will remember that my “main man”, my lead horse, my close equine partner for many years, Power, died in March. It was with a heavy heart and great trepidation that I set out to find another equine friend. Gratefully I had the support of several people to help me through the process. Good friends and Dunrovin colleagues, Barbara Jennings and Coe Dolven, were particularly helpful, as was my incredible husband, Sterling. Barbara is a “match maker” par excellence. She has an uncanny way of finding just the right horse for every situation; and Coe Dolven has a pair of “professionally trained” listening ears (she is a licensed clinical counselor) who just happened to accompany me on several horse scouting missions. Her patience and understanding of my emotional reaction to whole concept of trying to “replace” Power was very much needed to clear my heart and head enough to rationally participate in such an endeavor. Sterling’s unwavering support for me to move forward together with these two strong women put me back in the saddle with a new horse that arrived in May. My husband remarked that we needed a warm wind to descend from the mountains and blow some fresh life into my spirit that had been broken by Power’s death. He suggested the name Chinook – and that is, indeed, what we call him. Please read all about him and our journey toward forging a partnership in our All About Horses section of this newsletter.

     As we began to think about starting our Family Adventure Club, we realized that we would need to get a pony or two for the little ones that we hoped would visit us. No sooner had the thought entered our consciousness than an email alert arrived from a horse rescue organization; Willing Servants sought owners for two Shetland ponies – a mother and a son – that were kid friendly and looking for a new home together. We jumped on the opportunity, went to check them out, filled out the adoption papers and brought them home. They are all we hoped they would be – but I will let Senor Kona at Critter Corner tell you about them. I detect a hint of jealously from Senior Kona as he shares his low profile and affections of all the youngsters that frequent Dunrovin.

As the Thanksgiving season approaches, we at Dunrovin thank you for your continued interest and support.

Dunrovin Staff

      Laura Bosak, has returned to Dunrovin after an exciting summer in India. Before her departure last spring, Laura was working for Dunrovin Research, but now she finds herself working out in the barn for Dunrovin Ranch.

      Laura and SuzAnne share many of the same passions for horses, research, and community development and the two together enjoy navigating the dynamic nature of Dunrovin Ranch & Research. Laura will continue to wear different hats in both aspects of Dunrovin.

      When Laura was nine, she went horseback riding on a family vacation. After returning to their home in Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, she cried herself to sleep every night, until her parents could stand the drama no longer and enrolled her in riding lessons. She was a self-proclaimed “barn rat” until she attended college and received her Bachelor’s degree in Geography and subsequently earned her Master’s in Recreation Administration. She then returned to riding whenever she could, while continuing to foster her interest in travel and recreation.

      Laura has managed horse barns in Alberta and Tennessee, and having never owned her own horse, has always ridden the “left-overs,” affording her the ability to find the good in any horse. Laura learned to ride in all forms—from classical dressage and hunter jumper “back east,” to team penning and packing “out here”—but regardless of style, she admits that she probably rides with more caution than most because she’s always ridden horses with hard habits and therefore approaches riding as a problem-solver.

      Laura hopes to help Dunrovin foster the human-horse relationship among those who come to the ranch. She would like to emphasize the importance of the “undemanding” time spent between people and horses, and how that relationship can increase the quality of a rider’s experience and the size of their smile on the back of a horse.

      She is happy to be working with horses on a daily basis again. She is excited about the community that she’s become a part of and really enjoys the diversity of the clientele who come to Dunrovin Ranch.

      Laura adds to the international flair of Dunrovin with her love of Indian food and her newly acquired skills in the complicated, but fascinating Hindi language. When she’s not learning the quirks of her equine partners, Laura is running Nature-Link Institute, the non-profit that she founded with her husband, Keith. Nature-Link focuses on connecting students to communities (particularly in India) through education, research and advocacy.

      Laura has made a home in Missoula, with Keith, and her perfect dog, Berkley. She hopes to never leave, yet wishes to continue to tie her passions together and foresees a long tenure at Dunrovin that may evolve into other roles as both she and the ranch continue to grow and change.

Art in Nature – Nature in Art

      On July 21st, folks at Dunrovin had the pleasure of enjoying a visit from the Big Sky Singers who wanted to use the ranch as a venue for rehearsing their July 25th concert at St. Timothy’s Memorial Chapel, which is high above Georgetown Lake in western Montana. Both the Big Sky Singers and Dunrovin decided to use their rehearsal as an opportunity to invite our friends, colleagues, and supporters for an evening of food and entertainment. It could not have been a more magical evening– warm summer weather, a beautiful sunset, flowers in full bloom, and a very appreciative audience of both old and new friends. Not only did they treat us to their melodic voices, but they really let their hair down and had us rolling with laughter at their jokes and antics.

      The Big Sky Singers are comprised of Rob Quist, well-known performer and songwriter; Gary Funk, Associate Professor of Music at the University of Montana; Don MacDonald, an active member of the musical community in Anchorage, Alaska and original leader of the musical trio, "Devlin, MacDonald and I; and Don Collins, former lead baritone for the Seattle Opera Company. The group met as students at the University of Montana in 1966. They formed a folk group that became highly acclaimed at the time and while they eventually went their separate ways, they have returned to Montana almost every summer over the last 14 years for a small reunion tour—to grace Montanans with a mix of beautiful harmonies and strong quality of voice.

      This event was not the first time that Dunrovinwas able to connect with the artistry of Don Collins . As co-founder of the Missoula Children’s Theater (MCT) and current Senior Development Officer, Don has maintained his roots in the community of Missoula, and last summer, Dunrovin became an unusual partner for one of the outstanding programs offered my MCT.

      “Next Step Prep” is a very unique, practical, high-quality training program for students who are considering the performing arts as a major in college or as a career. Combining a focused curriculum of classroom instruction, private voice lessons, and specialty workshops taught by professionals from the worlds of Theatre, Television and Dance—the Next Step Prep Summer Program is designed to give students the skills needed to prepare themselves for post secondary studies in the Performing Arts.”

      Part of the curriculum for last summer’s Next Step Prep students included a visit to Dunrovin, to learn about horses and how their relationships with each other translate to our own experiences in the world. Dunrovin staff worked with students to understand horse and human hierarchies, on a group and individual level. The importance of observing these types of interactions was discussed in terms of how students could bring those observations to the stage. Students spent time challenging their fears, opening themselves to new experiences and building trust within themselves and in one another. It was an interesting and powerful day for all involved.

      Dunrovin is embedded in nature, and as our community grows, we see more and more, that art is all around us; brought to us through the people that are drawn to this place and by these experiences that surround us with beauty.

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The Power of Art

      In mid-September, Dunrovin partnered with Brandon Carpenter of Hashknife Horses to conduct a Leading the Herd expedition to the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch near Dupuyer, Montana. On the way home, five of us purposefully headed in the direction of Augusta, Montana in order to stop at the art gallery called Latigo and Lace. This eclectic little treasure of a store offers an exciting mix of western art, both contemporary and traditional. We lost ourselves, peeking in all the nooks and crannies, trying on fancy hats, drooling at the beautiful tooled leather, and browsing through the great selection of western books.

Painting of two horses reminiscent of Chinnok and Power - or of Sally's Echo and Sona

      As each of us headed to the cash register with our finds in hand, my eyes landed on a painted feather that literally stopped me in my tracks. The painting was of two running horses – a light colored sorrel with flaxen mane and tail; much like my new lead horse Chinook – followed by a bay; much like my recently deceased lead horse, Power. I picked it up while the tears swelled in my eyes– still feeling the loss of Power and at the same time feeling a growing tenderness towards Chinook.

      My companions immediately knew the source of my tears – and as they relayed my story to the strangers gathered in the warmth of the store, more tears began to flow. The owner, Sarah Walsh, handed out tissues and strangers no more, we all had a good cry for the animals that we had known, loved, and lost.

      In particular, I know that my dear friend Sally Suk was crying not just for me, but also for her own loss. She too, had a bay horse – a beautiful filly named Sona, who was foaled by my mare, Lady Lonza. Sona died almost a year ago. Like me, Sally eventually found a new horse – a lovely palomino filly that she named Sona’s Golden Echo – Echo for short. For both of us, the pain of our loss remains close to the surface.

      When I introduce Sally, I often tell people that she gets the credit on a good day and the blame on a bad day for Dunrovin coming into existence. Sally once received a prize for a horseback ride that I donated to our local public radio. She came out to ride with me and wouldn’t go away (and she is quick to explain that I never did ask her to go). She and I began to share a love of horses and Montana’s wild back-country. The pleasure of sharing these passions with her inspired me to form the equestrian club. Sally’s horsemanship has come a long way since that first ride. Not only is she now a Dunrovin guide, but she’s a very accomplished horsewoman – and one of my best friends.

      Seeing Sally cry with Sona and Echo, Power and Chinook in our minds reminded me of the very special bond that we have as friends and fellow travelers along the road that leads to Dunrovin.

      It is remarkable how, at times, the universe seems to open up and arrange things where they will be most appreciated. This seems to be especially true with art. Sometimes a painting can capture your emotion and draw it out of you, perhaps allowing you to see it another way, or just experience the raw beauty of it. It holds something powerful in that moment.

      I felt the need to give the beautiful feather to Sally – yet, I was also so moved by it that I wanted it for myself. In whispers I talked with the store owner who told me that the artist, Susan LeBlanc (unfortunately she does not have a web site) lives in Choteau and might be persuaded to create a similar one. Shhh, don’t tell Sally, but another painted feather is (pardon the pun) winging its way to Dunrovin.