Allie's Path to Recovery Needs Your Support

My name is Sarah, and I am starting this GoFundMe for my sister-in-love, Allie. Before I get to how we arrived here, let me tell you a little bit about Allie. Allie always loved animals. When she was 10 years old, Allie found her place in life on the back of a horse. It was the first time she felt completely at home. Riding horses is where Allie found self-confidence, joy, passion and determination. It has served her well over the past 3 decades. Allie has ridden horses and trained professionally for most of her life and has had the privilege of training, riding and winning on the backs of world class horses. She has even trained and worked with Olympic equestrian athletes. After tackling some personal hardships, Allie took a step towards a new chapter in her life. Although Allie believed she would be OK doing something else, she quickly realized the thought of not riding horses everyday just wasn’t for her. Her passion for horses is as much a part of her as the air she breathes. The riding bug reignited, and Allie accepted a position as a working student at Destination Farm in Dickerson, MD a little less than a year ago. Some would see her accepting the job as a working student a step backwards, but for Allie, just for the opportunity to be around horses doing what she loved is worth more than money and prestige. You don’t ride and train horses to get rich, you ride and train horses because you have a passion. And there is no one more passionate about riding than Allie.

On New Year’s Eve, Allie reported to work at Destination Farm. Allie's job as a working student is to care for the horses by cleaning stalls, feeding & watering the horses, and administering any necessary medication. Once the morning chores are done, her job is to ride - both client horses and horses owned by the Farm to get them ready to sell, or to train the horses for advancement to higher-level jumps and competitions.

The day of the accident, after her morning work was done, Allie got on a horse she had never ridden before. She took the horse around the ring a few times… nothing seemed out of the ordinary. She rode the horse down to one end of the ring and attempted to turn the horse around. The horse reared on its hind legs, lost its balance, and fell over. Allie was still on the horse, and when the horse fell, it rolled over Allie's leg. She has a compound fracture of the left femur (meaning it broke into more than three pieces) that required emergency surgery on New Year’s Day. The surgery required putting in a metal plate, 8 screws, and 26 staples to close the incision and put her femur back together. The surgeon anticipates a full recovery; however, the estimated recovery time is 6-12 months. Allie makes her living working on that Farm and training horses. This injury has put a hard stop on not only her work, but her passion.

Allie is a fighter and one of the strongest people I have ever met. In addition to healing from her surgery, Allie is also battling a rare form of cancer called MDS. Despite her cancer diagnosis and recent injury, she gets up every day and works, and works, and works. She has never been one to stay on the sidelines. She fights every single day and now, I’m asking you all to assist in her fight. The past year her role as a working student has been growing with opportunities. Unfortunately, until her leg heals, she has been stopped in her tracks. Horse trainers are private contractors, Allie is unable to work (and my brother has now missed over two weeks of work to take care of Allie), and the medical bills are piling up from the surgery. Allie would be the first person to step up if someone needed her, and I’m praying that same kindness will be bestowed on her. If you are unable to donate, please help me share her story. Thank you to everyone who has reached out already. We are so grateful for all of the prayers, love and support.