I, Patricia Carlson, hereby nominate Mary Anne Morrison for an MHAO Honorary Humanitarian Award. During March of 2020 while already stressed by the health risks and lockdowns of the Covid 19 pandemic, and the interruption of her riding lesson business, Mary Anne didn’t hesitate to help a fellow Morgan breeder -- me -- who became worried the uncertain pandemic travel restrictions would cause me to be separated by 900 miles across state lines from my beloved herd of 12 horses. We were caught in the process of moving but hadn’t intended to move the horses until our new facility was built sometime in May. Suddenly it seemed an emergency to get them shipped to Oregon immediately. With her own large herd to care for already and only part time help, Mary Anne did her best to meet the many challenges of instantly caring for an additional dozen very unhappy and stressed horses; most of whom had never been away from home, and included two stallions and two stud colts. None were used to being stalled or handled by strangers and the dramatic upheaval in the daily routine of their peaceful outdoor herd family lifestyle created a huge management problem for Mary Anne. Some became depressed, some frantic and others totally unruly. It takes an excellent horsewoman to properly deal with all these different personalities under stress. One yearling colt was so terrified he became dangerous -- Mary Anne spent many patient and kind hours with him helping him trust her and gain self-confidence. He is now a happy sweet fellow who loves everyone and is a joy to work with! She also spent a great deal of time and effort trying to help my older stallion adjust to being stalled and isolated from his herd, and dealing with unprofessional and incompetent outside farriers and veterinarians on his behalf. Without her critical care he may not have made it home. She also expertly delivered my only foal of 2020 and gave her a beautiful name -- ATMF Strawberry Moon. Leaving my horses in the care of anyone is scary -- even when they are home. Boarding them out for 2+ months was a constant knot in my stomach from worry, guilt and the stress of trying to get them home ASAP since I wasn’t free to visit them and we dared not hire help to get our facility built more quickly. Mary Anne did her best to keep all my sweet ponies safe so I could spend my time and energy building them a new home. 

facilities to pick up and move horses day and night, they also spent hoursinto the night with truck and trailer ready at a large horse barn in Newberg as the barn owner nervously awaited to the call to evacuate. Then, not only did they rescue horses all hours of the day and night over a period of three or four days, they also housed several of the horses at their farm, Silver Mesa Morgans. The Silver Mesa barn may have been filled with training horses, but Mike and Erin never turn a horse in need away. They just make room.

Anybody who is familiar with Mike and Erin knows that the rescuing of horses during the horrible fires is just one of the many times they have selflessly helped horsed in need. Mike and Erin have always been like this. About 10 years ago the breeder of a Morgan farm was in declining health and finally reached the point where her medical issues forced her to leave her farm and move into a care facility. A main issue for this farm was what to do with this woman's 16 Morgan horses ranging in age from 30 down to a yearling. If you know Mike and Erin, they would never turn a horse in need away. They made many trips to this farm to gather all 16 of these horses and bring them home with them. Erin and Mike spent months getting these horses ready to find their new forever homes. They were more focused on the well-being of these horses than they were on just dispersing them. It didn't matter how near or far the new homes for these horses were, Mike made sure they were all delivered safely. He even drove one to Reno to his new home. There was one special older gentleman that Erin and Mike decided to keep so he could live out his retirement years under the Silver Mesa banner. Mike and Erin Prevented these beautiful Morgan horses from ending up at an auction.

When you need someone to count on, Mike and Erin Silver are there when needed, whether the need is large or small. They are an invaluable asset to the Morgan Community in Oregon and we are so lucky that they are ours!

David Silver is following in his parent's humanitarian footsteps. As a volunteer firefighter for the City of Dundee, David fought on the Holiday fire near Eugene during the horrific fires in Oregon in September 2020. David volunteered to be on the front lines of this major fire. He worked to protect property and defend lives. He worked along side his crew day and night to the point of exhaustion. Regardless of how tired he was and without complaint, David worked these terribly long hoursfor several weeks to help get this fire under control.

David has been interested in working in emergency services since he was a young boy. His dad, Mike, was a police officer and has always been an inspiration to David. David has completed earning his EMT certification and plans to continue to increase his knowledge and ability to help people. The training to become a firefighter is difficult and David handles all the intensity smoothly. He has been trained in search and rescue events, car fires, structure fires, and of course wildfires which he used to so bravely fight last year's fires. The Holiday Fire was one of the largest in the State. This massive event was documented as the fastest growing wildfire in State history, burning 3 acres per second. The toughest part of the battle was fighting the 130 mph winds. Trees were blown over onto power lines causing even bigger problems. The fire escalated and entire towns were destroyed. The fire crews not only evacuated areas, they had to cut paths through blocked areas to allow for people to evacuate.

David also volunteers for the Polk County Fire Department and was selected as the recipient of the Rookie Of The Year Award. For his selfless actions I believe David should be a recipient of the MHAO Humanitarian Award. This young man represents the best of what we as a community have to offer.

   William Nicks was born on March 3, 1928 in Omaha, Nebraska. His family moved around quite a bit when Bill was a young boy before settling in Colorado where he spent many of his growing up years. Bill started riding horses at a very young age and there’s even a photograph on a horse when he was just three-years old. As a young man he signed up to be a Marine just in time for the Korean War. When Bill arrived at boot camp they had a shortage of combat boots, so Bill spent his first few weeks learning to march all over the parade grounds in his cowboy boots! On his enlistment paperwork he listed cow punch (which is a real working cowboy) as prior occupation.

In 2020 we weren't able to highlight Natalie Woodland at the Oregon Morgan Classic as our recipient of this scholarship. So this year we highlighted her along with our 2021 recipient, Grace Martin. Both Natalie and Grace have been active members of MHAO by serving on the MHAO Board as our Jr. Directors. Both worked together to create an MHAO Youth Facebook page, Instagram page to highlight Morgan Horses and the MHAO Youth Program, and MHAO Youth quarterly newsletter. We are so grateful for their hard work and contributions to our club. Both worked hard through high school to earn good grades and to contribute to their campus & equine communities.

Natalie used her scholarship to aid in her pursuit of an Accounting degree at Bushnell University. Her goal is to become a CPA and work in the family business. She also plans to remain active in the Morgan community. We again congratulate Natalie on being the first recipient of this new scholarship. We know it has special meaning to her due to her friendship with Alex.

Grace will use her scholarship to aid in attending the University of Washington. She will be working toward a degree in business. Along with serving on the MHAO Board of Directors, Grace is involved with the AMHA Youth Council. Despite all the challenges of completing her senior year in high school during the Pandemic, Grace made time to act as the 2021 Editor of the MHAO Breeders' Cup Futurity Booklet and did an excellent job. She is the owner of Grace Martin Designs which she operates in "her spare time". She offers ad design, logo design, and photography services. Congratulations Grace on being our 2021 recipient.

If you are interested in participating, contact Nikki Scovotti at Nicole@morganhorse.com or

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These planners will be available at Grand National 2021 and they make great stocking stuffers!