Fun Had by All at Sharon White’s Eighth Annual JUMP! Fundraiser

JUMP! is Last Frontier Farm’s annual derby-cross style fundraiser held in Summit Point, WV. In its eighth annual running, the 2016 edition was a huge success with funds raised to support Sharon White’s high performance horses and a fun, educational experience had by all. In our latest Athletux Equine blog, Sharon tells us about the event, which was held on the Fourth of July hence all the red, white and blue mixed in with Sharon’s signature bright orange! Many thanks to Sharon for writing and to Athletux for partnering with us on this blog series.

A JUMP! competitor gets patriotic. Photo courtesy of Sharon White.

Let’s face it, this is a very expensive sport that we all love so much. Fundraising to make your dreams possible can be an exhaustingly daunting task. I for one have an incredibly hard time asking anyone for money or help, yet to excel at the top levels of our sport, we must have a bit of help.

Eight years ago the idea to do the JUMP! fundraiser was born out of a need to raise money to compete overseas. My goal for a fundraiser was to create something that people benefited from and that would be fun and even a bit educational.

JUMP! has really grown into an event I look forward to every year. We offer classes throughout the day from the intro level up. The goal is for it to be fun and helpful as a true schooling opportunity. I coach all day, we have amazing cross country courses that are safe and inviting with water at every level, and even a lead horse for the green horses if they need it.

Go orange or go home! Photo courtesy of Sharon White.

Alongside our classes we also do some raffles, a silent auction and have fun prizes. Being that as many people know, I LOVE ORANGE, we also encourage fun costumes and orange spirit. This year our event happened to also be on the Fourth of July, which certainly added an additional level of fun and gave people another reason to dress in costume.

This event allows me to afford to make a trip overseas during my season, but it is so much more than that! It has become something my entire team looks forward to, and I hope the community looks forward to as well.

I can not thank everyone who donates items, volunteers, and supports the event enough! JUMP! has reminded me time and time again that if you offer people something in your fundraising efforts, it makes it so both you and they can feel good about it.

I look forward to seeing what JUMP! becomes in the future and my team and I are already excited for next year! If you have never been before, we would love for you to join us.