The United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) will again conduct its Emerson Burr Horsemanship Awards Program at The Fairfield County Hunt Club June Benefit Horse Show on June 26-30, 2007, in Westport, CT. One of the premier equestrian events in the country, the Fairfield June Horse Show benefits The EQUUS Foundation. The Emerson Burr Horsemanship Awards program was created in 2002 by friends and family of the late Emerson Burr to promote and perpetuate good horsemanship in younger equestrians. The awards competition had been held solely at the USEF Pony Finals National Championships until 2006, when the program was expanded to include the Fairfield June Show. Emerson Burr was stable manager at the Fairfield County Hunt Club for over 50 years. Those who knew Burr knew that horsemanship always came first. The children he led to victories, the ponies he led with a gentle hand and the countless people whose lives he touched, can testify to the legend he created in his own time. Awarded the USEF Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999, he was an outstanding equestrian whose lifetime experiences and accomplishments exemplified uncommon devotion to the sport and whose equestrian career and horsemanship continually elevated the sport’s excellence. Junior riders exhibiting in either the Pony Hunter or Children Hunter Pony Divisions at the Fairfield County Hunt Club June Benefit Horse Show are eligible to participate. Each child who participates will take a written test, then the four children in each of the four age groups who score the highest on the written test then move on to the hands-on Horsemanship Test. The best child in each age group will receive a monetary grant for furthering their education or offsetting equestrian-related costs. The program will be administered by Lauren E. Chapman, USEF's Assistant Director of Hunters and Jumpers, as part of the USEF Outreach Program. She will be assisted by show committee volunteer Deborah Ward. The written testing will be held from 9-11 a.m. and 1-3 p.m. on Wednesday, June 27, and Thursday, June 28, in the Hospitality Tent. The time and location of the hands-on horsemanship test will be announced. The awards presentation will take place immediately after the conclusion of the $1,000 Emerson Burr Pony Hunter Classic on Friday, June 29. The USEF Emerson Burr Horsemanship Awards Program is one of 37 charitable organizations that will receive grants in 2007 from The EQUUS Foundation, Inc., an all-volunteer 501(c)(3) non-profit fund-raising organization, founded in August 2002, to promote the positive use of the horse for the benefit of the general public and the equestrian sport as a whole. EQUUS also funds numerous therapeutic riding programs, including such local programs as Pegasus and We Will Ride, Inc. in Ridgefield, CT. In just four years, EQUUS has awarded over $600,000 in grants, benefiting thousands of horses and people, thanks to the generosity of its many individual and corporate donors. The EQUUS Foundation will host activities throughout the show, culminating with a gala Benefit Luncheon and Silent Auction on Saturday, June 30, 2007, taking place during the exciting $25,000 Fairfield Grand Prix, the final event of the five-day horse show. The EQUUS Foundation is seeking individuals and businesses to assist with their gracious generosity, either through cash donations, in-kind donations, auction donations or sponsorships. Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law. For additional information, contact The EQUUS Foundation, Inc., 168 Long Lots Road, Westport, CT 06880, or call (203) 259-1550, or e-mail to [email protected].