Mark Plumlee and Kurt Vom Orde

My name is Dana Wilson and I'm a graduate of Mission Farrier School from N.C. This is a poem I have written to tribute these two great men, farriers and inspiration to so many, and saviors in the lives of so many horses. It took until now for the words to come to me in this form.

What are we doing with this horse today?
A vet-check, a pre-purchase exam you say?

Not a glimmer of hope shone in her amber eye,
She appeared dead on the inside.

She's three-legged lame, she's in so much pain
They buted and raced her anyway.

I'm just trying to help her out,
You know how my passion for hooves have grown.

We watched her go, we watched her move
Poor, sweet thing had only a head-bobbing groove

She is unbelievably bred, she has a huge heart
It's a crying shame, laminitis, she has fallen apart

X-Rays were taken, custom shoeing performed
A remarkable feat by farrier Kurt Vom Orde

I'm not here to give false hope, said Dr. Mansmann
She should be dead, but we'll do all we can.

Years went by, shoeing packages, love and patience applied
Yes there were ups, even more downs made me cry

Bloody, bruised soles, month-long abscesses
It seemed all I could give were loving caresses

Through all this, Doc and Kurt fueled a fire
To become a farrier in me, had grown a desire

"Horseshoeing is a mental and physical event," Doc said that day
Kurt he believed, Kurt he did say,
Dana step over here, Dana step this way

Their faith in me, I will never forget
On my horse and on me, they laid their bets.

I researched, I trimmed, Laura helped me as I floundered along
When Mission Farrier School found me, I knew I could not go wrong

To school I went, eight weeks on the opposite coast
I left everything I knew, intended to make the most

There were 8 of us in that class,
Everyone of us showed their...brass

"I need a Blue 42! Someone come hold this knee!"
Yes, it was there, we were taught by Mark Plumlee

A journeyman farrier on an amazing course
Here what we do, is shoeing FOR the horse

Balance parameters, support the coffin joint
Comfort of the horse, is the entire point

Infinite things he taught us, always ask why
The most valuable lesson? YOU CAN ALWAYS TRY.

Kurt kindled the fire, Mark fanned the flame
Without the two of you, my life would not be the same

You both make a difference, of magnitude you'll never know
I can only hope and do my best, to repay it somehow.

—Dana Wilson, farrier (Catawba, N.C.)

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