Twilight Polo returns
The Great Meadow Foundation in The Plains has signed a multi-year contract to manage polo operations at the Greenhill Arena Polo Stadium and the Sheila C. Johnson Grass Polo Field.
The contract was awarded to a joint submission by the Twilight Polo Club, led by John Gobin and Whitney Ross, and the Beverly Polo Club, doing business as the Virginia United Polo League led by Bill Ballhaus and the Virginia United Polo League management team of Marcos Bignoli, Juan Ghirlanda, and Tolito Ocampo.
“We are excited to unveil … a more robust polo offering for the local and greater polo communities that includes higher goal grass games and tournaments and a return of Saturday night Twilight Polo,” said Great Meadow Foundation Chair John Hochheimer.
“Supporting the advancement of equestrian sport is a huge part of our mission and we couldn’t be happier to see this group working together towards this goal.”
Gwen: Former two-term board member, Child Care and Learning Center; three-term board member of Food Pantry; volunteer for Rappahannock Association for Arts and Community (RAAC) Community Theatre and Art Tour; mentor, Headwaters Star sh program. Former Peace Corps sta , senior program manager for several federal organizations, and later operated private management consulting business.
Ralph: Board member and scal vice president of RAAC and member of its Theatre Committee; board member, Krebser Fund; board member of Rapp at Home; former board member of the Rappahannock County Conservation Alliance, Belle Meade School and Headwaters; former Peace Corps volunteer and sta , retired a er 30 years as a management and organizational change consultant.
Gwen and Ralph have lived in Huntly for 14 years.
MOTIVATING SPARK
Gwen: After raising two children and retiring from a fulfilling career, I wanted to stay active, give back to the community, and help make a difference in peoples’ lives. Moving here has provided numerous volunteer opportunities that allow one to get involved in a personal and satisfying way.
Ralph: Community service was something I was engaged in throughout high school and college, so President John F. Kennedy’s call to service through the Peace Corp had great appeal to me. Forty-one years after my Peace Corp service, we moved to this beautiful place where I found I could easily engage in community service.
PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT
Gwen: Hands down, raising two wonderful children. But in terms of volunteering, my work as a mentee with the Star sh Program. I am hopeful that our ten-year relationship and the opportunities we shared will help her to continue to make choices that will enhance her life and help her live her dreams.
Ralph: Our two kids. Gwen and I raised two children who are deeply committed to community service. They have taken our life’s devotion to the environment, and making people’s lives healthier and happier, up a number of levels. Now they are models for us to follow our personal values more consistently.
BIGGEST CHALLENGE
Gwen: My mother died when I was ten years old. It was a life changing event that was a fundamental challenge for a very long time. Shortly therea er, my father remarried. My step mother was quite di erent than my mother, more like a friend than a parent. That was di cult to work through. Fortunately, we lived in a small rural community where I received strong support from many aunts, uncles and family friends.
Ralph: Leading an educational and professional development program for a 6,000-person multinational information technology corporation. It was the late 1990s and the internet was expanding as an education platform. We were breaking new ground, creating a multi-faceted online “university” which covered all aspects of learning and professional development.
WHY IT MATTERS
Gwen: Community organizations in this county are so e ective because they are supported by dedicated groups of volunteers and donors. This generosity allows these organizations to operate with little overhead costs with the savings passed on to those in need. Volunteering is a personally enriching experience that has always given back more to me than what I have contributed.
Ralph: Volunteering provides an opportunity to invest your time, energy, and talent toward a worthy cause. Expanding the de nition of altruism, the return from that commitment is the deep satisfaction of knowing that people may be enriched by your e orts. That’s the secret sauce of volunteering — helping those in need and feeling good about it.
FAVORITE RAPPAHANNOCK TREASURE
Gwen: The wonderful people we’ve gotten to know since moving here. They are the best treasures, providing a rich, stimulating environment as we move through our “senior” years.
Ralph: I think the tag line on my emails says it all: “Ahhhh … life in the country … sweet!” And the people make it even sweeter!!