My name is Meredith Jeffers. I currently reside in Boulder, Colorado, but I was a rider, boarder and employee of After Hours Farm for over 15 years. Had graduate school not caused me to leave the state, I would—without a doubt—continue to be a rider, boarder and employee of After Hours today. \r
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I began riding at the age of 6, and was the first “kid” to be taken on, albeit as a guinea pig, as a student at this facility. At that time there were no “ponies,” (Shadow wouldn’t come until much later, and even he would never admit to being small), and I was instructed, from day one, on the mechanics and the importance of horsemanship, sportsmanship, and responsibility. I was four feet tall, well under a hundred pounds, and yet I was treated as an adult and expected to adhere to discipline and the rules of proper horse care. \r
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In the ensuing fifteen years, I gradually became more involved in the farm activities. I began volunteering around the barn on the weekends, and throughout junior high and high school I worked as a stable hand every Saturday (and sometimes Sunday). At the same time, I brought my own horse, Mistri, a recently off the track thoroughbred, to come and be trained by Barb Jensen, the owner and instructor of After Hours Farm. Barb taught me how to train, ride, and care for Mistri, and in so doing taught me considerably more.\r
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As someone who was dedicated her life to school, education, and now university-level teaching, I feel justified in saying that I learned my most valuable lessons at After Hours Farm. Barb sets a high standard for herself, her students, and her horses. She insists on discipline and excellence, two values too often overlooked. She commands respect while respecting others, and she leads with compassion and intelligence. These elements—discipline, excellence, respect, compassion and intelligence—are not only the tenets of horsemanship, they are the keys to success in any walk of life. \r
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When it came time to move away for school, I had the option of selling Mistri for a considerable sum of money, which, needless to say, would have made college more affordable. By that time, she had been transformed into a beautiful, graceful hunter/jumper, and several people at local farms had approached my parents to buy her. We never even entertained these offers. Without thinking twice, my family called Barb and asked if she would be willing to accept Mistri as one of her own. No payment, no terms. We knew that what was best for Mistri--and any other horse, for that matter—was to be under Barb’s ownership and continued TLC (tender, loving care) at After Hours Farm.\r
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Although several years have passed since I moved to Colorado, I continue to return to After Hours whenever I am in the area. I am still welcomed by many familiar faces—and some horses, now retired, look unchanged (with perhaps a few extra grays around their whiskers). I am still pleased by their good care and good health, and the fact that so many good people have remained loyal to the farm. I am ever impressed by new additions (equine and human) and improvements made to the facility. While After Hours is not, nor has ever been, a flashy, new-age show factory, it is, and has been, home to many a good horse and rider. And I do not anticipate this changing in the next twenty years.\r
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I welcome any questions or comments with regard to my review. I am unabashedly biased, but I am also sincere. I can only hope that in some small way this pays the very large debt I owe to Barb, her horses, and the entire After Hours community for teaching me how to be a better rider and a better person.\r
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-Meredith Jeffers (meredith.jeffers@gmail. com)
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