Horses are an international language. I remember when I was a student ambassador for People to People and traveled to Italy, Austria, and Hungry when I was in grade school. My homestay in Gutau, Austria, lived on a farm and had Haflingers. I was so excited to be able to be around horses, even if for just a few days, because I was extremely homesick. Our mutual love of horses, no matter the breed, helped me bond with Ava and her family much easier than I expected.

Enter Joaquin Delón, a young man who grew up in Mexico and started dreaming about horses as a young kid. Even when his parents sent him to soccer camp, he yearned to run over to the neighboring pastures to pet the horses more than he wanted to score goals. After meeting, and working with, World Champion halter trainers Ted Turner and Wayne Halvorson, he’s moved to the U.S. and has already been pretty successful. Here is my feature on him from the March/April 2013 Equine Chronicle:

Joaquin Delón: Bringing Enthusiasm for the Halter Horse Across the Border (full PDF)