RRC gL SE an Dick Kern is a professional horse trainer—one who has been training show horses, many of them national cham- pions, for the past 15 years. A graduate of Lehman High School, the young trainer had always had a special love for horses, and went to work for Sen. Newell Wood, where he had his first experience working with ow horses. Today, he has opened his training farm for show horses and yy riding stable on the Rosernflel Farm in Beaumont. Dick was born on that same farm, the son of Marian Kern and the late Edwin Kern, Harveys Lake, in the stone house not too far from the stable. After working for Sen. Wood for ‘a time, Dick Kern left the area to work for a stable near Buffalo, N.Y., where he con- tinued to learn the fine points of training show horses. In 1960, he returned to the area to marry Marie Nothoff, daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Jack Nothoff, whom he had been dating since first starting to work at Wood’s farm. Shortly after their marriage, the young couple went to Ohio, where Dick continued in the work he loves. His love of horses is evidenced in his patience with the animals. He told the Post that each horse is a challenge; their personalities are varied, and each requires a different approach. Dick and his wife left Ohio to return to the Back Mountain down near their families, but horse training was in his blood and soon after, they travelled to Barboursville, Ky., where he was employed on a large horse farm formerly owned by Minton-Hickory, and at the time of his employment by a man from Hialeah, Fla. Professional horse trainers are usually natives of the South and much interest was shown in began to gain recognition for the fine job he was doing in breeding and training champion show horses. A little over 18 months after going to Kentucky, he was of- fered the position as manager- trainer for a large farm at Concord, Tenn., where he spent five and a half years managing the stables and breeding and training more than 100 head of show horses. i Dick Kern had many of the horses he trained take blue ribbons in national competition and he alsowon first and second honors in the Tennessee 5 brings out the best in his ho SR Futurity. It was while he was there that he trained the mother and father of Marely’s Emily’s' Duke, the three-year-old gaited American saddle horse he is now training for a young man from Long Island. The three-year-old was pur- chased by the Long Island resident from the farm in Tennessee while he was a student at University of Tennes- see. The young horse’s mother was Emily’s Daughter, a cham- pion show horse, who foaled five top show horses, one of which sold for more than $32,000, and one on which the owner would set no price. The sire ‘High Point Ace’s Star,” sired by Star Heart Stonewall, was the leading sire in the United States for three years. The three-year-old is pro- gressing so successfully that in Photos by J.R. Freeman Story by Charlot Denmon only nine days, his performance under the capable hands of Dick Dick put the horse through a series of exercises while the Post was visiting the stable and the beauty and breeding of the horse left no doubt as to the great intelligence of the animal, and its tremendous reaction to the patience and love of the trainer. A second horse in the stable is a yearling owned by a man in New Jersey who brought the horse to Mr. Kern for training as a gaited horse. Although born in July, 1972, like all pure-bred horses, the yearling auto- matically became a year old, Jan. 1. An unusual and interesting performance was that of the Tennessee Walking Horse at the stables owned by Clarence Naylor of Forty Fort. From Tennessee, the Kerns moved to Lewisburg, W. Va., where Dick worked as trainer for Kathy’s Farm Inc., for three and one-half years. There many of the horses he trained cap- tured blue ribbons in top horse shows throughout the nation. Then the Kerns and their six children decided to return to their home area where Dick ‘hoped to realize his lifelong ambition-to open his own horse farm and stables. They moved into a home in Forty Fort and Dick went to work at Singers for a short time while he canvassed the area for a location for his farm. Soon after their return, his plans were washed out by Hurricane Agnes when they were flooded and lost all their possessions. Dick left Singers and for some time commuted to New ‘Jersey weekly where he worked as a trainer on Tannis- terre Farms, Washington, N.J., while his wife, Marie, a regis- tered nurse, and the children moved into a HUD trailer in the Back Mountain where they are still forced to reside because they have been unable to find a home large enough for a family of eight. When the opportunity to lease the Rosentel stable at Beau- love of his trainer. mont came along, Dick finally was able to open his own training stable and -riding academy. Tas The Kerns’ six children are Richard, sixth grade student born in Pennsylvania; Michele, fourth grade student, Patrick, third grade, Tracey, second, and Lisa, Kindergarten, the Kerns’ little ‘hillbillies’, all born in Tennessee; and Angela, four years of age born in Lewisburg, W. Va. One of 11 children, Dick Kern had plenty of companions to hunt and fish with as a young- ster, and today fishing and ‘‘coon’’ hunting remain his favorite leisure time activity, after horses that is, for to Dick training horses is not work-it is his way of life. From early morning until late evening, he can be found at the stables training and taking care of his animals. ‘His son, Patrick is following in his dad’s footsteps and he, too, can be found at the stables whenever he has the oppor- tunity. He works as groom, feeder, and stable boy for his father. He spends hours brushing and taking care of the horses-nothing is too much for him to do...if he continues, it professional horse trainer in the Richard Kern family. Dick’s interest in his work leaves him little time for out- side activities and he is no joiner. He and his wife and family are members of Gate of Heaven Church, Dallas. Other than that, they spend all their time together as a family and as for Marie, working as a private duty nurse, taking care of a home and raising six children keeps her well occupied.
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