Thirteen young ladies made up the inaugural class for the first ever Kansas City FCA Horsemanship Camp held at Abby Road Farm in Peculiar, Missouri. Not only was this a first for the Kansas City area, it was the first ever Horsemanship Camp in the 54 year history of FCA. Calls came in from different parts of the country as people were interested in this new event for FCA.

The Camp was the dream of Kansas City FCA Board Co-Chair, Melody Balentine. She was inspired to start this camp while attending the FCA President’s Weekend in Florida.

Melody said that the speaker was asking what you can do for God to get out of your comfort zone. He was asking what is your niche and how can you use that for FCA? Melody turned to her husband Joe and said, “Horses… how about a horse camp?” Her dream that day became a reality for Kansas City FCA this summer.

The campers ranged in age from 7 to 14 and they each started the camp with various experiences with horses. Some were already accomplished riders while others had never been on a horse before.

Abby Road Farm owner Kelly Stewart and instructor Melissa Wilson worked with each camper to further their knowledge and confidence around horses. They learned the basic anatomy of a horse, the proper way to groom and saddle a horse, and also the proper way to wash a horse. This was done by painting one horse pink and blue and then taking the horse to the wash rack for a cooling and cleansing bath. The campers also beat the heat by bobbing for apples before attempting to get one of the horses to “bob for apples”. The campers also made scrapbooks with pictures taken during the event to forever remember their experience at FCA Camp.

The campers spent time daily learning about God and His Plan as they met in one large group and then in two smaller Huddle groups. They learned about Desiring to know God, the Discipline to trust and respond to Him, the Dedication to follow Him, and the Destination to be with Him. Each camper received a God’s Game Plan Bible to use and to take home.

The highlight of the Camp came on Saturday as campers and their families were invited to the culmination of the week. Toni Freeman, the Horse Program Director of Camp Barnabas gave her testimony about her experience with her special horse, Doughnut, and how her experiences with him deepened her faith. Everyone enjoyed the BBQ lunch before moving back to the arena for the horse show. Each camper was able to perform for their families and show off the skills they had learned over the past three days. After the horse demonstration was through, the campers took part in “games” that were both fun and demonstrated their growing skills with their horse. During the egg/spoon race and “Musical Chairs” the campers showed just how far they had come in their Horsemanship skills while having fun doing it.

Campers and staff alike are already looking forward to the next Horsemanship Camp. Thank you to all who volunteered to make this event a success!



All 13 girls got to "paint a horse" in order to learn it's anatomy.



Melody and Joe Balentine cast the vision and carried out the plans for the first ever camp.  Thank you Balentines!



Bobbing for apples was a VERY entertaining way to cool off during the heat of the day.



The final horse show allowed each girl to showcase the skills she had learned during the week.