Beth Lynn Lewis isn’t just our friend, she’s one of the rare farriers who somehow manages to shoe horses all day, help every colleague who calls her, volunteer for farrier associations, and still show up with enough patience left to teach the next generation of hoof nerds. She’s the person who will drop everything to help someone else… but right now, she’s the one who needs a community behind her.

On Wednesday morning while doing the very normal, very mom thing of driving her daughter to school, Beth and her beloved farrier van, known as Vanna White, were hit by a plow truck. Vanna was instantly voted off the island. Totaled. Gone. Straight to vehicle heaven, where she’s probably telling the other vans about all the insane farrier shenanigans she survived.

Unfortunately, Beth didn’t just lose a van. She lost her rolling workshop, her tools, equipment, supplies, basically everything she needs to do her job during the busiest time of year. Hot shoeing season is chaos on a normal day, and now she’s doing it without a vehicle, without tools, and with insurance that said, “We’ll help! …just not with the part that actually helps.”

Beth still owed money on Vanna, she’s got a family depending on her, and she’s the primary income for her household. She has a heavy caseload of equines under her care. She would never ask for a GoFundMe, so I am doing it, because she deserves more support than she will ever admit. And honestly? If you know Beth, then you know she’d be the first person to show up with a rasp, a forge, and a pep talk if this happened to anyone else.

The funds raised will help her put a down payment on a new work vehicle, replace damaged tools, rebuild her business setup, and cover the income she’s losing while she figures all of this out. A little help goes a long way and a lot of help might just get Beth back on the road with something handier than old Vanna ever dreamed of.

Beth will absolutely roll her eyes at this GoFundMe. She will insist she doesn’t need it, doesn’t want anyone making a fuss. But here’s the truth, she does need the help, she’ll never ask for it herself, and we’re doing it anyway because that’s what you do for someone who’s spent years showing up for everyone else. And once she’s back on the road, we fully expect her to pretend this never happened, so let’s make it worth it. Every donation, every bit of encouragement helps get her back to doing what she loves.

Even sharing this helps. Let’s get our girl back under horses and out of this mess.

- Rachel LeClarc and Cristina Winemiller