Derby Day

For the past year I have been blessed to volunteer at Banbury Cross Therapeutic Equestrian Center, and this year Faith has joined me, and we have both enjoyed working there ever so much.  Each year on the Kentucky Derby, Banbury hosts "Derby Day" their once a year fundraiser, and the week before is full of cleaning and set up.  

We did everything from cleaning pastures...

... to power washing gazebos and other structures, 

...to washing drying and stacking chairs,

over 240 chairs.  :)

We wiped down everything,

and the men set up all the arbors and the gazebo.

Everything we did was all building up to Saturday, and when we arrived that morning things were going in full swing.  Tables were being set, and everything was being decorated and set up.

There was the silent auction, which was full of a variety of useful and interesting items.

and a flower shop, extremely bright and colorful.

All morning long we set tables, and re-arranged tables, then straightened table settings, and then went back to check again. 

And this wasn't any simple setting either, you had a dinner fork, and a knife and spoon, then the dessert fork plus the charger and the plates, water, glasses, napkins etc..

Faith and decided to confuse everyone by wearing matching clothes.  We find it immensely amusing how many people ask us if are twins, but of course the funniest part is the look on their faces when we tell them we are 8 years apart!! :)

After lunch we all went an changed and then finished the last few details before the guests arrived.

As the time drew near, a bagpiper began to play filling the air with compelling music.

Inside all of the girls were frantically cutting pies, key lime pies, that insisted on being ornery and refused to come nicely out of their pie dishes.  Then once they had been removed and set on a plate, their crust would just drop off!

The young men had the fun of being valets and were very busy rushing cars here and there.

By now the Arena was filling up with lots of people, and many interesting hats.

There were big hats, small hats, pink ones, floppy ones, feathery, and plain...

The boys still valiantly moved cars, as the people began to come in floods.

... Hats with toy horse, with huge bows, or piles of netting, the variety was endless.

Once the dinner had been served, then the "bussing" units were sent forth to clear tables, and the back alley (or in this case back barn aisle) dish washing company started up business. 

You have never seen so many dishes in your life!

And of course, once the dinner dishes were cleared then the pies were served, then once the pie had been consumed we had to start again on the bussing, and then rinse all the dessert plates! :)

One of the many of the fundraiser done that night was auctioning off the sponsorship of our therapy horses. 

They all did wonderfully and behaved themselves quite well.  After the auction ended the valets started up again while us girls finished clearing the tables.  

Once everyone left, the great tear down began.  Now, that was epic, and quite exhausting, but... I do not have any pictures of it, for the simple reason that I was actually helping out and had no time at all to document it.  (Oh, and for the record, all the pictures of the set up and during, were taken between fits of work, I didn't just stand there doing nothing with camera in hand :)

~Chs