APHA Convention: Touring the Future Home of the American Paint Horse
By: Brittany Bevis
As many of our Paint Horse patrons are aware, the 2017 APHA Convention and Membership Meeting kicks off today in Irving, Texas and will continue for the next three days. As the General Membership meeting commences and new rule change proposals are considered, many took the opportunity to tour the future home of the American Paint Horse Association at the Fort Worth Stockyards.
One of those who made the trip to Cowtown (soon to be Paint Horse Town) was APHA National Director Randall Roser. Hailing from Lutz, Florida, Randall has been involved in APHA for 17 years. He’s served on the Florida Paint Horse Club’s Board of Directors as a Vice President. In addition, he was named a National Director for four years and was re-elected last year to serve another three-year term. During that time, he’s bred, raised, trained, and shown Paint Horses, resulting in World Champions, Honor Roll Champions, and Top Twenty award winners.
Randall gave us a behind-the-scenes look at the future home of the APHA headquarters, a project that’s excepted to be completed in spring of 2018.
“The trip to the Stockyards was an optional part of the APHA Convention for those interested to see where the new headquarters of APHA would be. The Stockyards staff showed us the vision for a complete overhaul of the Fort Worth Stockyards and a development plan to further attract people to the Stockyards.”
“The planned new location will be located in what’s currently called the Mule Barns. APHA headquarters will be located across from a new boutique hotel, which will further promote the western lifestyle of living. Keeping the beautifully aged facade of the building and preserving the history of the stockyards, while adding cafes, shopping, and more entertainment will bring more visitors to the area.”
It’s estimated that the open concept space for the new headquarters will be housed within 18,000 square feet. The location will include the General Store with APHA merchandise, personnel offices, and a museum. Randall confirmed that the APHA Foundation is currently working on developing capitol funding for the move.
“I feel this move will put APHA in front of millions of people who visit the Stockyards and expose them to the versatile Paint Horse on a daily basis, something that would not normally happen in its current location.”
As the Convention continues, Randall is excited to play a role on the Amateur Advisory Committee, but he’s also interested to sit in on discussions concerning rule change proposals that address the role of the Solid Paint Bred Horses in APHA. Stay tuned for more updates throughout the Convention. 
