All of us are privileged to meet people who can touch us to our deepest core. Kristin Webber was one of those people. Her quiet yet confident demeanor made for a peace-filled life. Sadly, High Point Farm and the rest of the equestrian community have had to say goodbye, for now, to Kristin. On November 13, 2007, as the result of massive head trauma sustained in a riding accident, Kristin went on ahead.

Kristin owed her passion for riding to her mother, Cindi. That passion was cultivated early on by Wendy Schnitzer, a close friend, as well as by Chris Pritchard, a much-loved instructor. Before joining us at High Point Farm, Kristin became a highly-valued working student for FEI international competitor Tina Konyot.

Kristin began riding at High Point in 2003 and, within the space of two years, had become an indispensable part of life at our farm. As Assistant Trainer, she spent most of her days in the saddle. Kristin adored introducing young horses to the discipline of dressage. She also loved advancing the skills of horses whose experience ranged from Training to FEI levels. She was a quiet, sensitive, and patient rider. Her obvious enthusiasm for training horses built discipline and confidence in every horse she rode. This enthusiasm expressed itself less often in words and more often in action. Her quest for excellence allowed no equine injury or illness to escape her notice. No task was too small to be undertaken without a painstaking concern for the welfare of the horse.

While at High Point Farm, Kristin developed a beginner program that very quickly came to include students of all ages. Kristin was able to awaken the joy and sense of accomplishment that riding and caring for horses brings. To each lesson, Kristin brought consummate skill, patience, and understanding. She knew how to develop confidence where it was lacking. She strove to counter the inevitable frustrations that accompany dressage. Nothing made her smile more broadly than when a student made forward progress and mastered what seemed a difficult exercise or skill.

To this recounting of her professional life, we must impart our sense of Kristin as a human being. She was a generous spirit and a joyful presence. Her smile and kind words could brighten the dreariest of days. Her self-assurance and poise infused serenity into even in the most hectic of moments. Her deep faith was a source of inspiration for us all. In thought, word, and deed, she set a standard that each of us aspires to achieve.

Kristin helping out during HPF Beautification Day

Kristin leaves behind her devoted family, beloved fiancé, and a wide circle of loving friends and acquaintances. At High Point Farm, she leaves behind a rich legacy of well-educated students and well-trained horses. Even richer is the legacy of indelible memories she leaves with each of us: challenging lessons learned and re-learned, blue ribbons won and lost, humorous stories told and embellished, personal confidences shared and treasured. Even in her absence, Kristin will always remain deeply woven into the fabric of life at High Point Farm. We have no doubt that, even now, she is busy loving the two-legged and four-legged friends that have gone on before us. Kristin, we look forward to riding beside you again.

Jesus said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' These two commands are pegs; everything in God's Law and the Prophets' hangs from them."