Area 1 Youth Team

Area 1 Youth Team Members 2019

Updated October 16, 2019

Area 1 NYATT 2019 Team Member Melanie Moossdorff:

Melanie graduated with honors from grade eight at Louise Arbour French Immersion School in June 2019.  While attending this school, she participated in the school play, badminton, and basketball teams and was the team captain of the volleyball team.  Her hobbies include hockey, downhill skiing, baking and roping and you want her on your team for Euchre.  She is well-traveled and spent four entire summers camping coast to coast across Canada.    

For the past three years, Melanie has ridden and volunteered at DDD Quarter Horses. She has competed in both speed and pleasure events since age four, progressing from home shows and club shows to APHA breed shows.  This summer at the Pinto World Show in Tulsa, OK she won two World Championships and a Reserve Championship in the youth speed events and placed in the top five in the youth ranch and performance events.  This will be the first year Melanie will be showing Quarter Horses, Area 1 and showing NYATT at the Congress.

Melanie’s ambition is to study business at the University of Western Ontario and follow a career path into marketing.  She is driven and focused and excels at directing large projects.  Real Estate is an alternate career plan for her and last year she found the farm her parents currently own.  She plans to continue her involvement with horses and compete at breed show level throughout high school in both speed and ranch events. 

Area 1 NYATT 2019 Team Member Justus  Charpontier:

I am 15 years old and in Grade 11 at Twin Lakes Secondary School in Orillia. I have twin sisters that I’m very close with, who also ride too! I’m not involved in any activities other than horseback riding.

My horses’ name is Hez Good N Lazy also known as Stryder. We are a great team and hard workers! I have been riding since I was 8 and showing at AQHA shows for 7 years.

I enjoy doing volunteer work and I have done volunteering at horse shows as well as outside of the horse shows. I completed my 40 hours of volunteer work for school by the end of grade 9! I have completed 15 volunteer hours between the Ontario youth events and helped with move-in days for Area 3.

Outside of horses, my future career goals are to become an Aviation Mechanic. I’m looking forward to having the opportunity to compete for the Area 1 NYATT Team at Congress this October.

Area 1 NYATT 2019 Team Member Ally  Charpontier:

I am 14 years old and in June I graduated from Uptergrove Public School. This fall I am attending Twin Lakes Secondary School. When I graduated from Grade 8 I won Athlete of The Year and the Learning Skills Award.

I have played a lot of sports in school including basketball, volleyball, flag football, baseball, cross-country, and track and field. Even with all of these sports, I spend most of my time at the barn riding my horse. My horse’s name is The Next Politician, also known as Simon, and he is 13 years old. He is my best friend. I have been riding since I was 4 and I have been involved with American Quarter horse shows since I was 6.

I enjoy volunteering and have helped with raking trail, helped out with Ontario youth event and helping on move-in day at Area 3 shows. My career goal outside of horses is to go into the medical field. I’m looking forward to being apart of the Area 1 NYATT Team at Congress!

Area 1 NYATT 2019 Team Member Sadie MacPhail:

My name is Sadie MacPhail and I have had horses as part of my family all my life! I attended my first horse show when I was seven years old. It has only been the past two years that I have been competing in OQHA Quarter Horse shows, however I have been involved in OPHC Paint Horse shows for the past few years with my Paint horse “Rocky”. We have had Quarter Horses in the past but the horse I have now is the first I have taken outside of our local club shows.

Aside from Quarter Horse and Paint Horses, I am also involved in a local club call North River Riders and am currently a youth representative on the board, help with running shows as well as organizing and fundraising for our NRR Youth Team which competes at the Ontario Saddle Club Youth Team Tournament in Paris. Some other volunteer experience includes 4H community betterment projects and local fundraising for the food bank.

In the past year, I have been awarded the courage, empathy and cooperation awards through my school and I also volunteer as a lunch monitor. I play on a number of school sports teams including basketball, volleyball, track and field and cross country running.

Outside of school, I enjoy playing tennis, skiing, piano/music, reading and riding and caring for the horses and cattle on our farm. I am also a member of multiple 4H clubs in my region (North Simcoe) including Beef Club, Swine Club, and Horse Club. Through 4H, I have attended judging competitions, Go For the Gold events and 4H leadership camp. I am currently the secretary of the Horse Club.

Some of my plans for the future are to do well in school and continue into high school in the next few years. I also hope that I can continue to attend Quarter Horse shows with my mare “Frosty” and improve my horsemanship skills at home and in the show arena. I wish to learn more about the Quarter Horse industry and become a more well-rounded rider in the near future.

Looking forward to showing on the NYATT Team for Area 1!

Area 1 NYATT 2019 Team Member Grace Marshall:

Hello, my name is Grace Marshall and I am nineteen years old. I just finished at Medway High School where I took a fifth year. During my school years, I have participated in many school sports including rugby, soccer, basketball, volleyball and track events.

I plan to continue my education after high school by attending Sheridan College for paralegal studies. In my community, I frequently volunteer at the Thorndale Optimist food booth during sporting events and the fall fair as well as many hours at Triple D Quarter Horses.

 I have been riding for thirteen years and barrel racing for ten years. I started with riding lessons at Triple D Quarter Horses in 2006 and still ride there now with Chanda Burke. I mostly compete at International Professional Rodeo Association (IPRA) rodeos across Ontario and Quebec but sometimes compete at Ontario Barrel Racing Association barrel races as well.

I also recently started competing in reining at local club shows. My barrel horse is an eight-year-old sorrel mare named Moony and my reining horse is a red roan gelding named Roany who is sixteen. I competed on the youth team for the past two years in the barrel racing and it was a great experience that I really enjoy a lot. I am even more excited to have the opportunity to compete on the youth team for reining this year for the first time.

I’m looking forward to competing on the Area 1 Youth NYATT Team down at Congress this October.

Area 1 NYATT 2019 Team Member Wyatt Hallock:

My name is Wyatt Hallock. I am likely one of the younger ones on the team this year but that doesn’t mean I haven’t put a lot of time in the saddle!

I am entering Grade 8 at Our Lady Immaculate in Strathroy, Ontario and I have spent my entire life around horses. I officially started taking lessons as soon as I turned 4 years old at Twin Streams Equestrian Centre but was very familiar with horses by that point as I’d been on my Mom’s horses since I was old enough to sit up! I did my first Area 1 show as a lead-liner that year and was hooked!

Under the guidance of Ken O’Donnell Performance Horses I have shown many schooling shows, club shows and this is my 2nd year fully dedicated to AQHA and Area 1 and my first year showing a horse that I am so honoured to be riding “Surely a Good Cowboy”

My biggest school activity this past year was helping to organize and prepare the food for our school Christmas Dinner. This was a full meal including turkey, ham and all the fixings, for all students and staff (over 400 people). I love seeing everyone come together to celebrate.

This spring I really tested my boundaries and pushed my limits by being selected for Kawanis Music Festival where we got Gold then participating in my school’s Battle of the Bands Fundraiser that my band walked away as champions. And in the past, I also organized a disaster relief campaign that resulted in over $1200 being donated to Red Cross.

On weekends I can be found volunteering at Twin Streams Equestrian keeping the barn in shape (feeding horses, cleaning stalls, turn in and out, etc.) When I’m not showing or in the barn I can be found mountain biking, kayaking, and in little bits of free time, I enjoy playing video games. For future plans, I obviously want to stay in the horse industry but I also want to be a photographer.

I’m looking forward to representing Area 1 QHPA, Twin Streams Equestrian Centre and Ken O’Donnell Performance Horses this year at NYATT.

PC: Lone Oak Equine Photography