FROM SHOW HIO-PUBLISHED MEDIA

SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration recently announced the judging panel for the 2021 Celebration.  Included in the panel were SHOW Judges’ Committee members Chris Bobo and David Sisk. In order to prevent any conflict of interest, Bobo and Sisk will step down from the SHOW Judges’ Committee until 30 days after The Celebration.

The committee will function with the remaining three members of Sam Sorrell, Bill Strickland and Nathan Clark until Bobo and Sisk rejoin the committee after they complete their judging duties at The Celebration.  Bobo and Sisk will judge The Celebration with Derek Bonner, Brent Grider and Dale Watts.

For more information about the SHOW HIO and rulebooks visit www.SHOWHIO.com. The 83rd Annual Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration will be held August 25th-September 4th

Deadline is Aug 1 to declare candidacy for TWHBEA International Board of Directors 2021-2024 term
Friday, July 9, 2021

Deadline for declaring candidacy for the TWHBEA International Board of Directors is August 1. One must be a member that owns registered walking horses, not be suspended, not be on federal suspension or a felon, and have more than three years continual membership in the association. The specifics for eligibility are outlined in the bylaws, here.  There are 12 seats up for election.  The following breaks down the states and regions for which directors will be elected.

Tennessee – 3 seats, Kentucky – 2 seats,  Alabama – 1 seat, California- 1 seat, Illinois – 1 seat, Missouri – 1 seat, South Carolina – 1 seat, Virginia  – 1 seat, Region 2 (Michigan, Wisconsin) – 1 seat

Members willing to be candidates for the Board of Directors shall notify the TWHBEA Executive Director in writing on or before August 1st. Email to: murad@twhbea.com If all eligibility requirements are met, those members’ names will be listed on the TWHBEA Website and Voice Magazine.

Judges selected for 83rd Annual Celebration
Thursday, July 8, 2021

SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration has selected Chris Bobo, Derek Bonner, Brent Grider, David Sisk and Dale Watts to judge its 83rd Annual Celebration, the premier event on the Tennessee Walking Horse industry’s calendar. The panel will include a newcomer to center ring in Watts and includes judges from Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina and Mississippi.

“We are excited about this panel which includes such a diverse geographic representation and includes some valuable experience along with a newcomer that recently judged our Fun Show. We look forward to a great Celebration that continues the momentum we’ve seen thus far this show season,” said Celebration CEO Warren Wells.

The Celebration affiliates with the SHOW Horse Industry Organization and thus selects is judges from the SHOW HIO certified judges’ list.  The SHOW HIO has 70 total judges but only 54 of which hold a AAA or better license, which is a Celebration requirement.  The Celebration sends an email to all AAA or better judges asking if they have a desire and availability to judge The Celebration and would like to be considered.  Of the 54 eligible, 28 responded they would like to be considered.

The Celebration has a committee that vets the candidates and puts together a slate that is then ratified by the entire board.  Both the committee and board votes only require a majority vote.

Sisk, from Columbia, Tenn., will be marking the cards for the fourth time. Sisk previously judged the Celebration in 2014, 2015 and 2018. Sisk has judged the Fun Show, Tunica, Gulf Coast Charity, North Carolina Championships, Alabama Jubilee, Mississippi Charity and National Trainers’ Show demonstrating his appeal across a wide range of the industry. Sisk also just judged the Christmas in July show over the 4th.

Bobo, from Shelbyville, Tenn., will also be making his fourth appearance in center ring having judged The Celebration previously in 2012, 2016 and 2017.  Bobo also judged the Christmas in July show over the 4th and has almost every major show on his resume, including the International Pleasure and Colt show.  He has also judged the Fun Show, Tunica, Gulf Coast Charity, Mississippi Charity, Alabama Jubilee, North Carolina Championships and Pulaski just to name a few.

Bonner, from Mooresboro, N.C., will be making his third trip to judge the world championships.  Bonner previously judged the Celebration in 2013 and 2015.  Bonner judged the Columbia Spring Jubilee this year and has also judged the Fun Show, Mississippi Charity, multiple 4th of July shows, National Trainers’ Show and FAST Spring Showcase.

Grider, from Columbia, Ky., will be judging the Celebration for the second time with his first being in 2012.  Grider has judged most of the industry’s premier events and also judged the Columbia Spring Jubilee this year.  Grider has judged multiple times at the Columbia Spring Jubilee as well as judging the Kentucky Celebration, Alabama Jubilee, Gulf Coast Charity, National Trainers’ Show three times, Marshall County and at the 4th of July.

Watts, from Summit, Miss., doubles as a walking horse trainer and also as a Hall of Fame girls and boys high school basketball coach in Mississippi. Watts will be marking the cards for the first time, but recently worked for The Celebration at its 2021 Spring Fun Show. Watts has also previously judged Woodbury Lions Club, Alabama Jubilee, North Carolina Championships, FAST Spring Showcase and Marshall County.

“It is the board’s goal each year to put forth a panel capable of judging at the highest level in our halter, pleasure and performance divisions. We feel confident this group meets that standard and provides all of our exhibitors with a level playing field,” said Celebration Board Chairman David Crowell.

The 83rd Annual Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration will be held August 25th – September 4th.  For more information, please visit www.TWHNC.com.

Mrs. Joyce Malone Johnson, age 89 of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, passed away on Sunday, June 13, 2021.

Mrs. Johnson was born February 15, 1932 in Smithville, Tennessee, a daughter of the late Ernest Malone and Claudia Grooms Malone. He was also preceded in death by her husband, retired American Airlines Captain, Charles R. “Cotton” Johnson and a sister, Judy Malone Cox.

Mrs. Johnson pioneered the Stewardess Corp with American Airlines and later moved to Chicago as Chief Stewardess between 1952 and 1957. She served as director of the housing authority in Shelbyville for five years. She also served the city of the Shelbyville on the Beer Board. Mrs. Johnson earned her relators license and worked for 25 years, becoming President of Middle Tennessee Board of Realtors. She was also an active member of the Kiwanis Club where she served as President.

Mrs. Johnson is survived by daughter, Lesa Charlynn Johnson of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and several nieces and nephews.

The family will hold a private service at a later date.

The family requests memorials in Mrs. Johnson’s memory be made to St. Jude.

PAST Act reintroduced in Senate
Thursday, June 24, 2021

U.S. Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Mark Warner (D-Virginia) have once again filed the PAST Act in the U.S. Senate.  The senators, who have very limited knowledge of the industry or the current state of the Tennessee Walking Horse, failed to modify the PAST Act which has failed to move forward at any previous point.

The National Academies of Sciences (NAS) recently competed an independent study that outlined many of the needed improvements to the inspection process.  The current inspection process, which is highly subjective and had its scar rule deemed “unenforceable” by the experts assembled by NAS, is left in place in the PAST Act.  Senators Crapo and Warner chose to ignore the experts and science and rather chose to appease the radical animal rights group and introduce an antiquated bill that doesn’t address the issues with the HPA.

The newly introduced PAST Act has little chance to move forward in the Senate and will again gain little to no support from lawmakers that are familiar with the industry. The co-sponsors consist of senators from states with very little, if any, Tennessee Walking Horse activity.

Industry leadership remains committed to following the science and incorporating improvements based upon the recommendation of NAS and other equine experts that help eliminate soring and allow the Tennessee Walking Horse to continue to compete on a level playing with other competitive show breeds.

Celebration releases final schedule for 2021

The Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration® has finalized and released the final class schedule for the 83rd Annual Celebration. In late 2020, The Celebration® formed a committee to review its class sheet and make recommendations for changes that would take into account past participation, industry trends and overall fan experience.

The committee was chaired by Jennifer Bingham and consisted of Nathan Clark, Justin Jenne’, Laurie Toone, Howard Hamilton and Amy Trimble. “We can’t thank the members of this committee enough for their hard work and how much thought and time they put into this task. We weren’t able to take all of the recommendations but we were able to incorporate most of them and our show will benefit as a result,” said board member Jeffrey Howard.

The committee released a tentative class sheet earlier this year and during the comment period the Celebration received over 70 comments regarding the schedule. “We were pleasantly surprised and encouraged by the number of comments and the overall interest level we received,” said Celebration Director of Operations Connie Allen.

The Celebration® will keep its committee in place and have them again look at the class sheet after this year’s show and make sure changes continue to reflect the areas of growth and participation levels. Classes that continue to have limited or declining participation will be looked at to eliminate and/or consolidate. “Our ultimate goal is to have the most competitive show we can have that is entertaining for our fans and ends at a reasonable time each evening,” concluded Howard.

Click here to view the schedule:

2021 CELEBRATION FINAL CLASS SCHEDULE

QUALIFYING CLASSES

WHOA announces 43rd annual International judges
Wednesday, June 23, 2021

The Walking Horse Owners’ is pleased to announce the three judges selected by current WHOA members for the 43rd Annual Pleasure & Colt Grand Championship.

Tracy Boyd of Columbia, Tennessee, Kevin Gilliam of Oxford, North Carolina and Justin Miller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee will officiate the 43rd event.

Dates for the International are July 23-31, 2021 and will be held at the Tennessee Miller Coliseum located at 304 West Thompson Lane in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. For reservations, class schedule or to register for The Maiden, please click here.

Obituary – Raymond Huey “Buddy” Wilhelm Jr.
Tuesday, June 22, 2021

Raymond Huey “Buddy” Wilhelm Jr., age 70, of Petersburg TN, passed from this life Monday, June 21, 2021, at Maury Regional Medical Center.

Buddy was born July 10, 1950, in New Hope, AL. He was the son of the late Raymond Huey Wilhelm Sr. and Dorothy Virginia Buford Wilhelm. He was a lifelong farmer, raised on his family’s farm in the Belfast Community where he loved hard work, walking horses, and the farm life, raising beef cattle, working hay and spending time with his family. He was a member of TN Walking Horse Breeders Association and Marshall County Farmers CO-OP

Survivors include: loving wife of 50 years, Vickie Lynn Pickle Wilhelm; Children; Richard (Kristin) Wilhelm of Shelbyville, and Lori (Tant) Mason of Belfast; sister, Annette Rodgers of Lewisburg; brothers, Mike Wilhelm of Murfreesboro, and Johnny Glenn Wilhelm of Petersburg; grandchildren; Cali, and Kate Mason, Hunter and Grace Wilhelm; also several nieces and nephews.

Graveside service will be held 10:00 a.m. Saturday, June 26, 2021 at Round Hill Cemetery in the Belfast Community with Dr. Taylor Todd officiating.

Visitation will be held 4-7 p.m. Friday June 25, 2021, at Doak-Howell Funeral Home.

Memorial donations may be made to Bedford Cancer Foundation at
www.bedfordcancerfoundation.org or by mail: P.O. Box 1523 Shelbyville,TN 37162-1523

Doak-Howell Funeral Home is serving the family.