Youth News

MOST WELL ATTENDED BANQUET IN ASSOCIATION HISTORY
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MOST WELL ATTENDED BANQUET IN ASSOCIATION HISTORY

Thank you to the OQHA Family for an unforgettable 2024 Banquet! Held at the Hilton Downtown Columbus on Saturday, February 3, the OQHA Annual Meetings and Awards Banquet was the most well-attended in association history. The Ohio Quarter Horse Association Board of Directors started the day with their annual meeting to review 2023 and plan for the new year, as well as install the newly elected and appointed directors. The AQHA Most Valuable Professional award was presented to Art O'Brien, voted on by his OQHA peers. The Ohio Amateur Quarter Horse Association and the Ohio Quarter Horse Youth Association also met and discussed their year, as well as installed their new directors and officers. Following the conclusion
Quarter Horse Congress Visits Capitol Square
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Quarter Horse Congress Visits Capitol Square

On Wednesday, October 4, Capitol Square got a taste of western culture when the All American Quarter Horse Congress paid a visit to the Ohio Statehouse, bringing four American Quarter Horses to the steps of the President William McKinley monument.  A press conference was held, featuring remarks from Lt. Governor Jon Husted, Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik, Department of Agriculture Director Brian Baldridge, and Ohio Quarter Horse Association (OQHA) CEO Dr. Scott Myers. Also in attendance were NBC4 anchor Monica Day, Ohio Expo Center General Manager Virgil Strickler and Assistant General Manager Alicia Shoults, OQHA Executive Vice President of Operations Justin Billings, OQHA President
2023 AQHYA World Show: Our Time Is Now!
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2023 AQHYA World Show: Our Time Is Now!

The Ohio Quarter Horse Youth Association finished strong in Oklahoma City at this year’s AQHYA World Championship show! It was a big year for Ohio, and OQHYA sent 44 youth exhibitors and 61 horses. Ohio youth brought home a total of:             11  CHAMPION Titles             9 RESERVE CHAMPION Titles             8 BRONZE CHAMPION Titles             11 Top Five  Placings             37 Top Ten  Placings             57 Finalist Placings Here’s the breakdown:   Isabella D’Onofrio and IF IT AINT SOUTHERN:             WORLD CHAMPION: L3 Performance Geldings     Isabella D’Onofrio and WHATA MOONLITE RIDE:              RESERVE 14-18 ALL AROUND             WORLD CHAMPION: L3 Hunt Seat Equitation 14-18             RESERVE
OQHA Celebrates Largest Banquet in History
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OQHA Celebrates Largest Banquet in History

In February, the OQHA Annual Meetings and Awards Banquet was held at the newly renovated Hilton Downtown Columbus, now the largest hotel in Ohio.   The Ohio Quarter Horse Association Board of Directors and members met for their annual meeting to recap the 2022 year and install the newly elected and appointed directors. During the meeting, Missy Thyfault was presented with the AQHA Most Valuable Professional award, voted on by her OQHA peers. The Ohio Quarter Horse Youth Association and the Ohio Amateur Quarter Horse Association also met and presented their plans for the 2023 year.   Following the conclusion of the annual meetings, the Ohio affiliates sponsored a hospitality room to present awards and provide
OQHA Youth Win Big at World!
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OQHA Youth Win Big at World!

The Ohio Quarter Horse Youth Association finished strong in Oklahoma City at this year’s Ford AQHYA World Championship show! It was the 50 th anniversary for the youth world show, and OQHYA sent 39 youth exhibitors and 57 horses. Several members brought home championship titles this year. Among them:   Alexa Black and HUNTIN A HOT COWGIRL:             WORLD CHAMPION: L3 Performance Geldings             WORLD CHAMPION: L3 Huntseat Equitation 14-18          Emma Gore and KM GENUINELY BEST:             WORLD CHAMPION: L3 Showmanship 13 & Under             RESERVE CHAMPION: L3 Western Riding             WORLD CHAMPION: L3 Western Horsemanship 13 & Under             ALL AROUND HIGH POINT 13 & UNDER
2022 Annual Picnic Success
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2022 Annual Picnic Success

The OQHA Annual Picnic was held last Monday, June 19th at Irongate Equestrian Center in Croton, Ohio. Over 150 members from all over the state gathered for a buffet-style dinner at 5:30pm, which featured hamburgers and hot dogs provided by IronGate and side dishes and desserts provided by members. IronGate also provided a beautiful candy bar for everyone to enjoy. Board meetings began at 7pm, after the OQHYA members sold tokens for their truck raffle. If you have not yet purchased your tokens for the truck raffle, please contact a youth member today! The next OQHA board meeting will be held August 15th at the OQHA office in Columbus, starting at 7pm. Stay up-to-date on all things OQHA by following the Facebook  and 
The Challenge kicked off the 2022 Ohio show season
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The Challenge kicked off the 2022 Ohio show season

The Challenge, put on by the SOQHA Youth kicked off the 2022 Ohio show season.  With the addition of a L1 Youth WT division, $11,000 was given away to youth competing in the Scholarship Challenge.  There were fun classes and free photos by Ryan Geiger Photography. Show high points can be found on SOQHA.com/shows .  Exhibitors new to AQHA were welcomed with a gift.  We hope to see them at more shows this year. Challenge Winners  Small Fry Champion - $1000 - Starched Rockies & Gwen Toth  Reserve - $500 – Image Of You & Marley Tincher  L1 Youth Walk Trot Champion - $1000 – Hes A Lazy Lover & Anna Webb Reserve - $500 – Interesting Lady & Meghan Kaser L1 Youth Champion - $1000 – KM Vested In Bo & Abbey Zawisza 
2021 Awards Banquet
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2021 Awards Banquet

The 2021 Ohio Quarter Horse Awards Banquet held on Saturday, February 5, 2022 at the Hilton Downtown Columbus was our biggest banquet yet!  The banquet room was packed with more than 480 in attendance and over $87,000 in awards presented to the 2021 OQHA award winners. OQHA Director, Justin Billings, and the 2021 Congress Queen, Darcy Woods, gave a warm welcome to all of the guests and led the everyone in an invocation before dinner. CEO, Dr. Scott Myers, welcomed everyone to the Annual Banquet and then took a moment to pay tribute to Past President and National Director, Clark Bradley. He invited  OQHA Director, Cindy Morehead, on stage to read her sentiment for Clark, along with life lessons she learned from
Register for YES 2021
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Register for YES 2021

AQHYA MEMBERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD ARE INVITED TO MAKE THEIR MARK AT THE 2021 BANK OF AMERICA YOUTH EXCELLENCE SEMINAR, JULY 12-14, IN AMARILLO, TEXAS! Youth interested in attending the  2021 Bank of America Youth Excellence Seminar , scheduled for July 12-14 in Amarillo, Texas, can  register now . “The Youth Excellence Seminar is the event to be at this summer. With AQHYA members and horse enthusiasts from around the country coming together, there is not a more exhilarating or fun-filled event out there,” said current AQHYA President Justin Eddy. “From leadership workshops, keynote speakers and days filled with excitement, everyone can find something for them in Amarillo this summer. I hope to see you there!”
2021 SOQHA The Madness is a Wrap
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2021 SOQHA The Madness is a Wrap

The Madness, presented by SOQHA, lived up to its name in more than one way! More than 17,700 AQHA entries, more than 2900 NSBA Dual/Approved entries, more than 240 NSBA entries in the money classes and add in the Small Fry & other non-approved classes, made for an amazing run of shows. Sure, it could have been warmer to start, but the competition was HOT. The youth that showed will be in the finals of the Youth World in August. The Amateur and Select classes were some of the deepest seen in some time. SOQHA truly had horses and exhibitors from California to Maine. SOQHA hopes to see Canadian exhibitors back sooner than later. SOQHA thanks each and every person that showed, watched, attended, and hooted for the great