Equine and Wine fundraiser brings in $4,500

Looking into a horse’s eyes is like nothing else.

“The way they look at you and through you, you can see everything about them through their eyes,” Blair Haven Farm Equine Rescue and Sanctuary President Renae Blair said.

Feelings like these are what brought hundreds of people to attend and donate to Blair Haven Farm’s Sunday, June 7, Equine and Wine Fundraiser.

The yearly event was hosted at Grapes and Ladders Winery.

Between them, the more than 300 attendees raised $4,500 toward helping the equines Blair cares for at her rescue farm.

Rainy weather meant fewer people attended the event than last year, but visitors still had a great time.

“Last year we had sunshine,” she said. “But our goal was to have 300 plus people walk through, and we got that.

Just a few of the event’s attractions included a “kissing booth” where visitors could pet donkeys, a backdrop for photos, barbecue, hot dogs and some of Blair Haven Farm’s horses complete with tuxedo bibs.

“It was so cute,” Blair said.

One highlight of the event was the auctioning off of paintings of some Blair Haven Farms horses, blankets and gift baskets.

All these attractions cost about $800 to set up, leaving roughly $3,700 to benefit the farm.

Blair plans to use the money to build a pasture shelter for her mammoth donkeys. The shelter will likely cost between $4,500 and $5,000 by the end.

Once it’s done, it will keep the animals dry and comfortable in bad weather

“Donkeys don’t have coats like horses,” she said. “So when they get wet, they stay wet. And they hate being wet.”

Blair thanked the devoted fans and supporters of Blair Haven Farms for the event’s success.

The horse community’s enthusiasm for animals reaches across vast distances.

“They have a love for animals,” she said of the farm’s supporters.

Some of Blair Haven Farm’s supporters have driven from Texas to see the event and help out the horses. On social media, the farm even has followers in the United Kingdom.

“It’s great to see the community come together as one and enjoy each other for a good cause,” Blair said.

Even if they can’t talk, the horses have many ways they give back.

“They heal us as much as we heal them,” she said.