Horse Show Proposal: A Ring in the Ring!
Photo courtesy of Michele Krieg.
By: Brittany Bevis
A very special horse show surprise caught one competitor off guard this past weekend at the Elite Spring Fling Show in Hamburg, New York. When Heather Graft entered the pen to help present awards for the Jackpot Western Pleasure class on Sunday, she had no idea that there was a secret plan underway…
The Jackpot Western Pleasure class was sponsored by Chafin Performance Horses, and Heather’s longtime boyfriend, Jim Chafin, was also competing in the class. Therefore, it made perfect sense to have another representative stand in to help with the award ceremony. Nothing was suspected… yet.
We had the opportunity to speak with Jim’s sister, Michele Krieg, to find out how this elaborate plan was put into place.
“As you know, Jim and Heather have been together for nine years,” Michele says. “They have worked, moved, and been in many facilities together, and they are now located in Jackson Center, Pennsylvania. They had been talking about getting married for some time now. However, Heather knew nothing about what happened on Sunday in Hamburg.”
Photo courtesy of Michele Krieg.
“Jim had made arrangements with his family, customers, and show staff so that all would be covered. Once they called for the horses to be lined up, the announcer said, ‘At this time, we have something special that we would like to do. Jim, the ring is yours.'”
With a little help from Jim’s mount for the class, Best Too Be Cool, aka “Timmy,” a gray Quarter Horse owned by client Susan Grabski, Jim loped out of the line-up to Heather and dismounted.
“He knelt on one knee and proposed… and she said YES!” Michele says. “I suppose the rest is history! When we returned to the stalls, we had cake and champagne. Jim had called our parents and my family, and we made the drive down from Ohio to see the entire thing. It was wonderful, and I couldn’t be more happy for them.”
Photo courtesy of Michele Krieg.
After the surprise marriage proposal, the entire Chafin Performance Horses clan retired to the stalls where clients had assisted by setting up a congratulatory spread complete with a heart-shaped, red and white cake and chilled bottles of champagne. Following the toast and plenty of well-wishes, everyone saddled up and prepared for their remaining classes. The horse show must go on, after all.
A big congratulations goes out to our friends, Jim and Heather, on their engagement!
Photo courtesy of Michele Krieg.
