by Horse Farms Forever | Sep 16, 2024 | Events, News
Delivered Once Again!
Horse Farms Forever is immensely grateful for the unwavering support and commitment of our 2024 Conservation Summit Sponsors. We continue to be delighted by the enthusiasm shown by the businesses and individuals of Marion County for our open spaces and beautiful places. Brook Ledge Horse Transportation is once again leading the herd as our Title Sponsor for the fifth year in a row.
Those blue and white horse vans are a common sight around Ocala. Each time you see one, we hope you’ll give a smile and a silent salute to a proven partner and ally in farmland preservation. Better yet, come to the Summit and thank them personally!
Here’s Brook Ledge’s Manager, Brian Roberts, leading off last year’s Summit with a few words about why horses and horse farms are so important to Marion County:
Welcome Advent Health!
And now Advent Health Ocala has stepped forward as Presenting Sponsor, joining Brook Ledge at the head of the herd. Advent Health has been a faithful supporter of our mission and our Summit for many years. They understand the vital link between community health and the environment. They also have a special place in their hearts for our horse farms and the people who work in the equine industry. This has led to the establishment of the AdventHealth Ocala’s Harnessing Health: Equine Worker Health Initiative. Also, AdventHealth Ocala Foundation is investing $10,000 to seed the hospital’s Care 360° program fund. Care 360 is a no-cost program that coordinates transportation, meal delivery and more for underserved patients, including the equine worker population. We are excited to be aligned with this innovative program that will help to sustain the vital staff that keep our Marion County equine industry world class.
Dive In
This year we celebrate the beauty and value of the Springs and the Floridian Aquifer that flows beneath our feet. The Farmland Preservation Area was established in part to protect the springsheds of Silver Springs and Rainbow Springs. The health of our water and our farmland are interconnected on a deep level. The Farmland Preservation Area serves as a valuable recharge area for the Springs and the mineral-rich drinking water nourishes our livestock and all of us. The beauty and recreational opportunities provided by the Springs are a big part of the unique and valuable identity of Marion County.
Photo by Mark Emery
Come and celebrate the Springs with us on November 14th, from 5-7pm at Ocala Breeders’ Sales. There will be a poster and print signing by Mark Emery and Margaret Ross Tolbert along with light fare and sponsor tables at 4pm with the main event starting at 5pm. This event will be a visual feast with the video and images shared by Mark Emery and the inspiring multimedia art of Margaret Ross Tolbert. The Florida Springs Institute will balance all of that art with their presentation on science of the Springs and how to keep them protected. We will also honor the Felburn Foundation’s Guy Marwick with the Acorn Award. And come to cheer on the next generation as we display and present awards to the winners of the Springs Forever Art Contest for Marion County’s K-12 students.
There are still Conservation Summit Sponsorship Opportunities Available!
by Horse Farms Forever | Sep 5, 2024 | Events, News
Horse Farms Forever, Inc.® is pleased to announce Mark Emery, an Emmy award-winning cinematographer, composer, and photographer for National Geographic, the Smithsonian Network, BBC, and PBS as our Keynote Speaker at the 2024 Conservation Summit to be held on Thursday, November 14, 5-7pm at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Arena. Renowned artist of the springs Margaret Ross Tolbert and National Geographic Explorer, cave diver and geology professor Jason Gulley will also join us.
Mark’s stunning photography and videos of the springs will help create more awareness about how important Marion County’s springs are to ensuring clean drinking water for residents and visitors.
Title Sponsor
Presenting Sponsor
Thank You!!
Mark Emery will sign prints of his photographs. Margaret Ross Tolbert will sign posters of her paintings.
Prints and posters will be available for purchase at the event. The pre-event starts at 4:00 PM and will be held at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Arena.
The springs have inspired artists for centuries. We welcome special guest speaker Margaret Ross Tolbert, internationally renowned artist of the springs and author of AQUIFERious. Tolbert’s Water’s Margins exhibit was recently featured at the Appleton Museum of Art. From large-scale paintings to more intimate works created underwater on pieces of slate, Tolbert uses an array of kaleidoscopic blues and earth tones to express her passion for and understanding of these unique subaquatic environments.
Enlightening Science
Also joining us will be Jason Gulley, PhD, professor of Geology at the University of South Florida, photographer and National Geographic Explorer. Jason’s research and photography career have taken him on expeditions to all seven continents, from underwater caves in Florida, the Caribbean and Africa as well as to glaciers in Alaska, the Arctic and the Mt Everest region of Nepal.
He has a PhD in geology from the University of Florida (2010) and is a technical diving and rebreather instructor. Jason’s research emphasizes the human impacts on the environment, cave systems, the Aquifer, and especially Florida’s springs.
To help nurture and encourage the next generation, Horse Farms Forever is sponsoring a poster and essay contest for all K-12 students in partnership with the Marion County Soil and Water Conservation District. The winners will be presented with ribbons and gift certificates at the Summit. We will display the art and essays online and at the event.
Horse Farms Forever is honored to present the Acorn Award to Guy Marwick because through his decades-long leadership, he has helped protect thousands of acres of environmentally sensitive land in Marion County and across Florida. Guy, who now serves as the Executive Director of The Felburn Foundation, was the original Founder and Director of the Silver River Museum & Environmental Education Center. The museum opened over 30 years ago in 1991 as a partnership with Marion County Public Schools and over 15,000 children visit the museum every year.
- Florida is home to more than 1,000 artesian springs that are dependent on groundwater from the Floridan Aquifer System.
- There are three First Magnitude Springs in Marion County and together, these springs discharge over 1 billion gallons of water per day: Silver Glen Springs, Rainbow Springs, and Silver Springs, which is the largest artesian spring in the world.
- The Springs Protection Zones for Rainbow Springs and Silver Springs are located within the 193,000-acre Farmland Preservation Area, which was designated in 2005 by Marion County to protect the rare agricultural soils and springsheds in the area. You can see the springsheds on the above map as the yellow shaded areas. The red line is the boundary of the Farmland Preservation Area.
- HFF is raising awareness about the importance of the Springs Protection Zones in the Farmland Preservation Area to help protect the recharge areas for the Floridan Aquifer. The aquifer is referred to as “the lifeblood of the springs” and is the source of much of Florida’s drinking water.
Join us!
November 14th, 5-7pm with book and poster signings at 4pm.
Tickets are $45 and include auditorium seating, light fare and beverages. Doors open at 4pm.
At Ocala Breeder’s Sales with ample free parking.
Questions? Email Busy Shires, Horse Farms Forever Director of Conservation Strategies or call (386) 853-4437.
.
by Michelle Grald | Aug 6, 2024
Chances are, if you have attended our annual Conservation Summit, you have had the chance to meet our friends at Gentle Carousel Miniature Therapy Horses! 
We are thankful for the amazing work they do and the lives they touch every day. Don’t miss the opportunity to meet them!
To help nurture and encourage the next generation, Horse Farms Forever is sponsoring a poster and essay contest for all K-12 students in partnership with the Marion County Soil and Water Conservation District. The winners will be presented with ribbons and gift certificates at the Summit. We will display the art and essays online and at the event.
Marketing & Media Partners
Paul & Ann Kaplan
Matt & Courtney Varney
Bill Kearns
Nicole Hornblower
