Alison’s dedication leads to top UK award

STRULE Valley Riding Club stalwart Alison Donnell was rewarded for almost three decades of unrelenting effort and hard work at the weekend at Newbury Racecourse where she received the British Riding Club’s Leo Harris Award for excellent service to riding clubs.

The Leo Harris Award is presented annually to a Riding Club member in the UK who has given outstanding voluntary service to the movement over a period of years.

Helen Badger, a committee member of Strule Valley Riding Club, sent a nomination in the summer with Alison’s resume detailing her contributions and explaining why she felt Alison should be awarded this title.

The information forwarded to the British Riding Clubs included the year her service commenced, roles performed within the club, achievements and how Alison has inspired others, all of which are numerous given her lengthy involvement in Strule Valley Riding Club, which she formed alongside her mother, Pearl, Elsie McVeigh and Eve Stafford 26 years ago.

The decision to open the club all those years ago came more out of necessity than desire as Alison had reached an age where she was no longer young enough to be a member of a pony club and at the time there was no organised outlet for horse riders.

Since that initial decision, the club has gone from strength to strength with a dedicated committee and membership who thoroughly enjoy the social aspect of riding horses together.

“When I got too old for the pony club there was no riding club in the area, there was nothing for over 18s,” she explained.

“It’s been a lot of hard work and I do love it. It’s my passion and the fact we formed the club together [with her mother] makes it [the club’s success and Alison’s award] more special because she’s been with me every step of the way.

“It’s hard to believe it’s been 26 years and hopefully the club continues to thrive and survive because it’s nice to have that little bit of leisure time, to get out with the horses and to have a wee social thing of people meeting with their horses.

“Everyone has the same interests and we meet every Wednesday night, so it’s something for everyone to look forward to.”

All area representatives then are given the opportunity to cast a vote and the nomination with the most votes is awarded the Leo Harris Trophy which they are able to keep for a year. British Riding Clubs have 31,000 members in more than 480 clubs.

Given the vast numbers involved, it’s not surprising that Alison was a little shocked to have been named the recipient of the coveted Trophy.

“I didn’t think anything would come of [the nomination] because there were loads in for it. It feels fantastic to have won the award, but it took a while for it to sink in,” Alison acknowledged.

Alison travelled over to England last week to attend The British Horse Society Awards Ceremony at Newbury Racecourse to receive her Award. BHS Ambassador Lizzie Greenwood-Hughes was present to recognise the award winners for their outstanding contribution to the equestrian industry.