Camping and Potluck

Great opportunity to camp in your trailer or tent and enjoy family fun at the Santa Clara County Horsemen's.  The kids can run around, play with your horses/ponies and enjoy each other's company.   

Click the event for full details Camping & Potluck.  RSVP to Kathleen O'Neill (408) 590-3933

 Tack Sale 8:00am-1:00pm      Seller Setup at 7am      

Non-members have the option to rent a table for $15 or bring their own tables and sell for free. 

Members can, of course, use the club's tables at no charge. 

Line Dancing with Sydney   

Sydney always does a great job teaching to the young and old. 

We love seeing folks come out and have fun. 

Below is the important letter, with link, sent out by the County calling for Agricultural Advisory Committee applicants. It's an exciting time to help create workable ordinances.

 from Rachael Parakh, Community Outreach

County of Santa Clara Rural Zoning Amendments and Agricultural Impact Threshold

Dear Stakeholder, 

This email is to notify you that the Department of Planning and Development is now accepting applications for an Agricultural Advisory Committee intended to provide feedback to the Rural Zoning Amendments project team throughout the preparation of the draft ordinance. If you are interested in joining the Committee, please submit an application form here: https://plandev.santaclaracounty.gov/ag-advisory-committee-application

Applications will be accepted through May 22, 2026. If you have any questions, please contact us at:

County of Santa Clara Planning Office

County Government Center

70 West Hedding, 7th Floor, East Wing, San José CA 95110

Email: Planning2@pln.sccgov.org

Handmade Quilt Fund Raiser

Yvonne Lee will give you the tickets and keep a duplicate with your name on it. Buy at a General Meeting or contact Yvonne directly if you want to purchase outside of the store yvonneleecdf@gmail.com.

Club Store

          Buy 1 (one) ticket for $5            Buy 6 tickets for $25

  This is a handmade quilt. It is stunning. The drawing will be held on the day of the October Fall Festival.

SCCHA Exhibits Horses at the County Fair

Starting this year, the Santa Clara County Fair will move from local schools' summer break to the third week of August. This is part of a long-term strategy to secure essential Carnival vendors who are only available at that time and ensures the fair’s continued success. The 2026 Fair will be held August 19-23.

The Fair recognizes the new dates coincide with the start of the school year and has made accommodations to support 4-H and FFA youth livestock exhibitors:

Please share this information if someone wonders the reason for the change. The Fair organizers had children in the program themselves and do not take the required change lightly. We're already starting to recruit Club volunteers for our 4th SCC Fair horse exhibit!

Prior Events 

Salinas River Beach Ride

This annual trail ride, arranged by Kathleen O'Neill, is a great opportunity to get your horse accustomed to the sand and waves in the company of supportive "beach veterans". 

 The big payoff for our horses is the lovely roll in the sand at the end!

All-breed schooling show put on by Gold Coast Arabian Association of California at our SCCHA Arena   

 Thanks to help from our SCCHA volunteers, we helped host this great show at our arena in addition to our usual monthly Play Days. More visibility for local horse events is always a positive for our club!     

Housekeeping Alerts and New Features 

NEW!!! Donate now to Support the Junior Scholarship Program

The Scholarship program is supported by your donations.  To donate, click here and put in the comments that your donation is for the scholarship program:  Donate

Check out the details of the program.  The deadline for submission is June 30th Scholarship Program

Junior Program: 

Our new Junior Hoofbeat Director, Marissa Nebenzahl, introduced our association to her children's Sunset 4-H Group. They are looking to partner with us for their Community Service Project. They invited Rachael Parakh, our Public Relations Director, to present at their club meeting last month. After discussing our club history and the unique benefits of horses, Rachael brainstormed project ideas with the 4-H youth. Since they are a creative and artistic group, they decided to paint a mural on our Snack Shack — just in time for our Playday series and other exciting workshops! This mural will pull elements from our association logo which Yvonne Lee raised money to have painted on the front wall of our clubhouse. We promise to keep you updated as the project unfolds.

**UPDATE**   **Thank you Sunset 4-H!**

Sunset 4-H Teams with Horsemen's for Service Learning Project

written by: Rachael Parakh

Sunset 4-H, with about 20 youth, reached out to our Association in February asking if we had a task that fulfilled their Service Learning Project. We brainstormed three different ideas, and they chose the one that utilized their artistic and creative talents: a mural on the snack shack. Four representatives from their club came to our showgrounds to measure the walls and discuss the design layout. We settled on the idea that they would illustrate our logo coming to life. A few weeks later, a wonderful design was submitted to our board which was then unanimously approved. Work began soon after by selecting paint colors onsite, rolling out the background and then penciling in the details. Sunday, April 26th was the main event. Six families with 12 youth came to paint our mural. The design depicts our three stallions, California poppies, and dandelion wishes surrounding the phrase, "Where dreams run free!". It was a day of celebration, so it seemed fitting to bring horses for the youth to meet after all their hard work. Lori Carr brought her Dutch Warmblood, Special. Linda Carcione brought her Appaloosa, Butchy Boy, and Rachael Parakh brought her Thoroughbred, Digby. After explaining the difference between predator and prey and demonstrating how to reach out their hands like flat dinner plates to feed carrots, the youth were invited to come and greet the horses. The horses had an incredible time as ambassadors, receiving all the love and affection from the Sunset 4-H Club. Lots of questions were asked about the horse's feet, teeth and how they drink, what fun! Photos show the joy from that day. Please be sure to stop by the snack shack to see their mural in person during our opening playday on May 17th!

NEW!!! Join the Junior Program

We have a new Junior Director, with lots of ideas and energy.  Do you have a Junior under the age of 18? Join the fun and enroll in the Junior Program to get invitations for the fun events.  Junior Program 

Membership 

Membership - Bring a Friend.  Help Grow the Association:  

Tell your friends about the "Horsemen's".  Their first dinner, as a guest, is free at the General/Dinner Meeting.  Have them apply for membership!  Membership Application     See all the benefits membership brings Membership Overview & Rules, Trainer Policy, Liability Release Waiver

      SCCHA GENERAL MEETING MINUTES 

April 17, 2026

CTO at 8:05 PM by Tami Moore.  Tami thanked Jennifer and Liz for preparing dinner.  She also thanked our Bar and Beverage Counter Director, Amy.

 Stephen led the Pledge of Allegiance.

TREASURER’S REPORT:  Yvonne read the March 2026 Treasurer Report. (Log in to website to see Treasurer’s report– Member’s Only section)

EVENTS:  Yvonne reminded us that tomorrow is the Line Dancing here in the clubhouse, starting at 7:00PM.

Liz reminded us of the Gold Coast Arabian Show on April 25, here at our facility.

Liz announced that the Robbie Potter clinic, May 2-3, is full. 

Liz also reminded us of the raffle for a horse quilt, we are selling tickets, which will be raffled off in our October meeting.  Proceeds will go to our drill team, and towards our mural.

Yvonne reminded us of our 5D playdays, starting in May.

May 17

June 21

July 19

August 23

September 19. Must ride 2 out of 5 shows to qualify for the buckle.

Linda reminded us of the Beach Ride on April 25.

PUBLIC RELATIONS:  Rachael spoke about the following:

Our Board has agreed to re-join the CA State Horsemens Association.  This is a good opportunity to stay connected.  The County had another RZA meeting, they are asking for people to be on the Equine Advisory Committee, to help come up with ordinances which are workable.  Our club would like to be part of this committee.  We could also have a representative to be in a much larger group.  We are actively building coalitions.

The County Fair is coming August 19-23.  Ken and Cheryl are offering to bring their mini donkeys.  Sign-ups will go out.

Our Open House is coming up in October, please put it on your calendar.

She also reported that The Sunset 4-H group is doing a service project. They will create a mural for our snack shack.  Rachael shared the drawing/art, themed “Where Dreams Run Free”.  They have begun painting the mural. April 26 will be the main painting day.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:  Stephen reported that the Lone Oak April show has been postponed to June 6.  Their Halloween show will be October 10.

Liz announced the crocheted eggs on the table are for people to take home.

Jennifer reminded the community we still need volunteers for General Meeting Dinners for June and September.  Please contact Jennifer or Liz if your barn or team would like to make dinner for our community.

Tami presented our opportunity to ride in the Rose Parade in Pasadena.  She presented a slide show and flier. 

Guests: Kim Trang, Maya Krishaswamy, Zara Krishaswamy, of 4-H Sunset Club - guests of Marissa.

Horse and human birthday prize offerings were given out by Rachael.

Motion to adjourn at 8:50 PM made by Stephen, seconded by Liz, the motion carried.

Volunteer Corner & Donations

There are always opportunities to volunteer for our activities. Check here frequently as more activities show up in the summer.