EAST SPARTA, Ohio — The eighth annual Saddle Up for St. Jude Benefit Trail Ride was held April 26 with 102 horse riders attending the 10-mile benefit ride with 100 percent of the proceeds collected benefiting the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Locally, Gina Soehnlen of Bear Creek Stables in East Sparta has organized and hosted the ride for the past eight years.
Armstrong Saddlery in Salem provided a gift certificate for the participant collecting the most money in sponsorships.
Thousands collected
More than $7,000 was collected for the St. Jude charity, with Jamie Grimes of Navarre, Ohio, collecting the most sponsorship money from an individual donor.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, located in Memphis, Tenn,, was founded in 1962 by entertainer Danny Thomas to combat catastrophic diseases in children.
St. Jude is non-sectarian, non-discriminatory and has provided total medical care to over 19,000 patients, some locally.
All costs of treatment beyond those reimbursed by insurance are covered by the hospital. At St. Jude, scientists and physicians work side by side seeking a better means of treatment, but also the cause, cure and prevention of diseases such as leukemia, Hodgkin’s disease and other various forms of cancer.
Saves lives
Through basic research programs, new medications and treatments have been developed to help save the lives of thousands of children each year, bringing the survival rates of childhood cancers up from less than 20 percent to better than 70 percent overall.
More information
For more information on the yearly benefit ride or to make a donation call Soehnlen at 330-484-3901.
