Neal Martin (Bemidji, Minn.)
Let’s see: there are 365 days in a year. My farrier, Neal Martin, works 350 of them (a couple days off for fishing, a little time to check things off the ‘honey-do’ list, work on the kitchen remodel , and attend to the needs of aging parents).
During those 350 days a year, Neal averages six to 10 horses a day. That’s 2,100 – 3,650 horses a year. That means bending over and picking up 8,400 – 14,000 feet a year. (I am not even trying to pull into the equation the number of two-legged, human clients he deals with who inevitably need to be consoled for something, reprimanded for something else, and/or reminded about hoof care and feeding care).
Thank you, Neal, for taking care of Annie, Victor, Patsy Clyde and Tom Sawyer; as well as donkeys Noah and Moses. No matter the temperature or the flies or the rain or the snow – or the ‘numbers’ - you always make us feel as if we are one in a million.
— Kathleen Preece (Bemidji, Minn.)