How Twitter helped the October 9-11 AQHA Trail Ride in Alabama.

Emily Peak and the multi-talented Islehava Mocha Latte. Photo by Amy Boddie

Lots of people (yep, myself included) have scoffed at Twitter as being, well, not very useful. Its founder, Evan Williams, famously replied: “Whoever said that things have to be useful?”

But I bet even Evan is surprised by just how useful this service is becoming. Mashable, a social media guide, has detailed the charity fundraisers that have gone great guns on Twitter. “Twestival,” a collection of Twitter-organized festivals all over the world, raised more than $250,000 to provide clean drinking water. “Tweetsgiving” raised more than $11,000 to build a school in Tanzania. And a private effort to help pay for a heart transplant for the brother of a CNN Internet correspondent raised nearly a million dollars.

Emily Jo Peak isn’t shooting quite that high, but this Alabama AQHA member is using Twitter to help raise funds for a therapeutic riding center. She’s gathering items for a silent auction that will be held during the October 9-11 AQHA trail ride in Tuscumbia, Alabama, at Seven Springs Lodge. Proceeds from the ride and auction will benefit Storybook Farm, which is in Emily’s college hometown of Auburn, Alabama. The way she describes it, it sounds like a cool place.

Sororities and fraternities from Auburn University volunteer there, and everything from the landscaping to the horses’ names has a storybook theme. Children with disabilities find refuge on the horses’ backs there, as do children whose parents are deployed in the armed forces or kids dealing with grief.

So when Emily needed help gathering auction items, she turned to her friends on Twitter – known as “Tweeps.” Tena Bastian, another AQHA member, author and all-around good gal, helped rally her Twitter friends, too.

“You know how Tena operates,” Emily says, laughing. “People just said, ‘Yes, ma’am!’ ”

But Tena had a good point: She said this was a great chance for people to promote their products, themselves as artists – whatever they’d like to generate publicity for.

From Arizona, artist Karen McLain sent a framed oil painting of a wild horse. From California, Buckaroo Leather contributed a nice bronc halter. Lone Wolf Media donated some fun cowgirl art. Cowgirl Oasis kicked in some western décor items. And of course, Tena is sending autographed copies of her books, “The Foal Is the Goal,” “Tips and Tidbits for the Horse Lover” and “The Horses We Love, The Lessons We Learn.” Tena, who became friends with Emily through Twitter, also made a connection with Tootie Bland, founder and organizer of the Road to the Horse colt-starting challenge, and Tootie contributed two tickets to the 2010 event and a DVD. The list goes on …

Now I’m wishing that I could be in Alabama to bid on some of this stuff!

“It’s clear that Twitter really does work,” Emily says. “It’s not going to work just to promote yourself but also to help charities, and down the road, the kids” at Storybook Farm.

Emily, who will be at the AQHA ride on her cow-horse-in-training Islehava Mocha Latte, says she has been amazed at the Tweeps’ generosity.

“I’m just tickled to death with everything. I can’t wait to see who it goes to. I can’t wait to see who gets Tena’s book so I can tell them Chapter 7’s going to make you bawl your eyes out,” she says.

Some of the items may also be given away as door prizes. So seriously, if you’re anywhere within driving distance of Tuscumbia, I’d head that way. And, uh, you wanna make some proxy bids for me?

Happy riding!
Holly Clanahan
Editor, America’s Horse magazine

Don’t miss the fun, educational and heart-warming stories in the print version of America’s Horse! It goes to all members of the American Quarter Horse Association, and it’ll also keep you in the loop on Association news. We want you to belong!

Related Posts:

• Fit to Ride
• Trail Ride Gadgets
• Learning New Tricks
• Learning to Ride Again
• A Beautiful Ride