Pictured above a few of the members of the DFG Team behind the scenes: Theresa Albrecht, Ruben Gonzalez, Ishmael Calderon, Molly McLaughlin, McKenzie Miller, Raul Mora, Tara Gail Bostwick, Caroline & Yogi Roberson, Jonathon Torres 

It is said that it takes a village, we cannot think of a better example of this than the recent generosity and enthusiasm demonstrated by members of the Daniel F Geitner Stables Family. The Aiken Horse Park Foundation is very pleased to announce that it will be holding a dedication ceremony and celebration on Saturday afternoon, October 29th in conjunction with October At Bruce's Field II, immediately following the Halloween Costume Class (aprox. 5:30pm). The success of the DFG Barn naming since the concept of this creative mini campaign first proposed by the Geitners and some of their clients has surpassed all expectations. After just over a year of fund-raising within the DFG barn family, Barn 12 will officially be known as the DFG Stables barn.

Upon hearing that the DFG Barn efforts were successful, Campaign Chairs Jane and Bob Hottensen commented; Our capital campaign is incredibly pleased to recognize this extraordinary gift from a broad cross section of competitors and donors. Sherry kozloff deserves much credit for mobilizing contributors to honor Daniel and Cathy as two of the Horse Park’s strongest competitors, respected leaders, and tireless contributors to our operating culture and success in the equestrian community. We note that both the size of the gift and the breadth of donors reflects the progress we are making in generating long term community and equestrian support for Bruce’s Field. 

Foundation president, Jack Wetzel also weighed in on this milestone event, by remarking; We are incredibly fortunate to have Daniel and Cathy on “our team”. They add a unique depth of experience and energy and competitive perspective. We are pleased that their friends and supporters have honored the Geitner’s through this wonderful gift. Looking ahead we are cultivating additional donors who see a similar need and have the capacity to impact Bruce’s Field and our broader community in such a productive and generous fashion. 

We hope that the DFG Group both inspires and challenges other barn families to come up with their own creative ways to support this campaign at a level at which they are most comfortable. 

Earlier this year the Aiken Horse Park Foundation launched its $7 million Next Chapter Capital Campaign, Phase I: Path to Sustainability. This phase includes the completion of 10 new barns, initial execution on a landscaping plan, building a new competition arena, and expanding practice areas for competitors.

 The foundation has come a long way in the past several years and the park’s reputation and capacity has put it at the very top of elite competitive equestrian destinations in the country. Long term, sustainability goals will provide a unique ability to impact our community in an increasingly positive fashion. 

The first new barn was dedicated in early March 2022, thanks to an anonymous donor who wished to name a barn in honor of Evie and Phillip Dutton in recognition of the significant relationship Phillip had with Bruce Duchossois and in acknowledgement of his ongoing leadership role at the Aiken Horse Park Foundation. Three more barn dedications were held in May, thanks to the generous contributions of Jack Wetzel, Dayle and Ed Fortino, and the John R. Ingram Advised Fund of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. We will dedicate the River Edge Farm Barn early next winter followed by the Debbie Smith  barn dedication next May. 

We have long recognized that in order to remain the venue of choice to our many friends in the equestrian industry, we must continue to reinvest in the property. In that spirit we have added permanent stalls so that more of our guests can enjoy a comfortable and memorable horse show experience. 

Additional barns also represent a clear path to financial sustainability for the Foundation, thus allowing us to focus on our Mission and perpetuating Bruce’s Legacy. 

The Next Chapter Capital Campaign was conceived in the Fall of 2019 with hopes to launch in the Spring of 2020. While the Pandemic interrupted our progress, we have now resumed our efforts to engage all stakeholders in the Next Chapter.

We are very fortunate to have forged a strong partnership with Security Federal Bank. Their commitment to us has allowed us to flexibly move forward with our goal towards sustainability while the campaign momentum remains strong. We will be using additional campaign contributions to retire our loans and provide fresh capital to execute on 2022 projects. 

We have raised $4.95 million to date but we still have a ways to go to reach our goal of $7 million. 

Sincerest thank you to everyone who has already contributed to this campaign:

DONORS (As of October 15, 2022)

Anonymous (5)

The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee

Craig Duchossois

Dayle Duchossois Fortino

Richard Duchossois

Shannon and Geoff Ellis

Donna and Mike Fanning

Kelli Gibson

James and Angela Hambrick Foundation

Rodney Harkey

Jane and Robert Hottensen

Annie Jones

LPR Charitable Trust

Larlee Construction, LLC

Missy Luczak-Smith

TeriAnn Mahony Miller

Helen Naylor

The Neuwirth Foundation Inc. 

Wendy O'Brien

Deborah Smith

John Stephens

The Rein Family

Liz and Jeff Tarumianz

Jack Wetzel

Sandra Wohlers

In Memory of Richard L Duchossois

Maximilian Maude

In Memory of Jason Schlotterback

Jan Seawell

James Thorp

Lisa and Jack Towell

Tara and Charlie Bostwick

Jodie & Dave Miller

Tammy Rissanen

Alexa Miller

Anne and Butch Hostetter

Julie Drummond

Robert McCormick

Frank, Vivian and Caroline Willard

Lisa Gardner

Buntin Podrebarac

W. William Miller

Roger Beerbower

Thomas Summey

Lauren Graves Bryant

Lyn Buxton

Melissa Davis

Deidre Myers

Evie & Phillip Dutton Barn Stalls

Amy Borun

Annie Dewitt

Evie and Phillip Dutton

Amy Peloquin

Isabella Timone

In Memory of Sandra Thomas

Debbie Taussig-Boehner

Tara and Charlie Bostwick 

Celene Oken

Please join us in writing Aiken's Next Chapter...