Ovarian cancer is ranked 5th among cancer killers for American women. 

Most women have no symptoms until the disease has progressed toward its advanced stages and as the disease progresses, survival rates sharply drop.  However, women can be cured with existing treatment methods if they detect the cancer early. 

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month and last week, I took part in announcement at the University of Kentucky (UK) on a 24-year-long study conducted by the Ovarian Cancer Screening Program that showed annual screening greatly improves early detection and can save lives.  Since the program began in 1987, more than 200,000 screenings have been performed on more than 37,000 Kentucky women and they have found more than 447 ovarian tumors and 76 detected malignancies.

The Ovarian Cancer Screening Program offers free screenings and are available at six locations throughout the state that include:

• Markey Cancer Center, 800 Rose Street, UK, Lexington
• Floyd County Health Department, 283 Goble Street, Prestonsburg
• Hardin County Health Department, 580 Westport Rd, Elizabethtown
• Mason County Health Department, 120 West 3rd Street, Maysville
• McCracken County Health Department, 916 Kentucky Avenue, Paducah
• Pulaski County Health Department, 45 Roberts Street, Somerset  

The screening procedure is painless and lasts around 15 minutes.

Women are the primary caretakers in many our Kentucky families, but they often put her own well-being below that of their children and spouses.   I strongly urge women to take advantage of these free screenings across the state because taking responsibility for our own health will ultimately improve the health of our loved ones. 

The Ovarian Cancer Screening Program is open to women age 50 or older, or women over the age of 25 who have a family history of ovarian cancer. 

For more information, call (859) 323-4687 or (800) 766-8279.

Thank you,
First Lady Jane Beshear

WHO:  Richard and Jeannette McGrath of Hearts Up Ranch

WHAT:  Press conference with Public Safety Administrative Officer Rick Curtis, representing Lexington Mayor Jim Gray, Kentucky Horse Park executive director John Nicholson, and the McGraths. 

WHEN:  Wednesday, Sept 7, 4pm

WHERE:  Kentucky Horse Park's Alltech Arena

WHY:   Richard and Jeannette McGrath are 3,000 miles into a 4,000-mile coast-to-coast horseback journey to raise awareness and funds for Hearts Up Ranch, a serene, working ranch established in Jackson, Wyoming where "emotionally broken people can find peace with both God and themselves once again."  Their ride began on March 4, 2010.  They have traversed the deserts and mountains of the west, winter on the plains, and the flooding and storms of the spring on the same 4 horses (who will be resting and recuperating at the Maker's Mark Secretariat Center, located at the Kentucky Horse Park before finishing the last segment of the ride in Virginia Beach). www.HeartsUpRanch.com.  

HOW:  Members of the media should go to the Alltech Arena.  Past the parking booth, take the roundabout to Cigar Lane, then turn left on Alltech Way.  The press conference will be held outside the main entrance (signs will be posted for alternate rain location).  For more information please contact Equestrian Influence Media Department, www.equestrianinfluence.com, 615-830-1001, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Watch an interview with the McGraths from the Kentucky Horse Park: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfElmeNDETk

Watch a video from WTVQ-ABC36 from the press conference:  http://www.wtvq.com/news/9551-4000-miles-on-horseback-to-heal

Photos from the Lexington Herald-Leader from the press conference:
http://www.kentucky.com/2011/09/07/1873207/couple-rides-x-country-on-horses.html

The oxen are coming!

November 9-12, several teams of oxen will be at the park showing off their skills.

These impressive animals will conduct demonstrations on how they pull carts, plow, pull weighted sleds, manage an obstacle course, and more. Visitors can watch yoking demonstrations, washing, grooming, and visit with these beautiful, gentle animals and their teamsters.

Mark your calendar for something a little different at the park!  More information to come.

The Horse is a fully comprehensive exhibit that aims to educate children on all aspects of the horse from its biology to its impact on society. 

The tour begins with one theory on how the horse has changed over millions of years to its form today.  It also focuses on the domestication of the horse and how the horse has played a key role in warfare, work, travel, and sports.  Students will also love the interactive portion showing the digestive system of the horse in a fun and interesting way. 

This exhibition is ideal for science teachers in grades 3-12 and directly correlates with much of the core content required from the Kentucky Department of Education. 

Themes within social studies, such as history and world cultures, and art are also covered and can make a very informative and entertaining trip for students in middle and high school. 

Fully prepared and informative educators’ guides are made available through the American Museum of Natural History.  This includes questions to develop discussion, key terms and ideas, and games.  The website also illustrates how to teach within the exhibit and connect the content upon return to the classroom. 

Click here for more information on the exhibition, or for a list of fulfilled Kentucky Core Content go to www.imh.org.

For more information, contact Melissa Mullins at the International Museum of the Horse, 859-259-4232 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

LEXINGTON, KY (September 1, 2011)  Enrollment applications are now available for the Spring 2012 Semester of the Kentucky Horse Park's Professional Horseman’s Course, Jan 17-May 4, 2012.

The Kentucky Horse Park’s Education Department offers a unique and hands-on educational opportunity unequalled by other equine schools.  Students will have the opportunity to study and work with more than 30 breeds of horses residing at the Kentucky Horse Park while acquiring the knowledge and skills to launch a productive career in the equine industry.  This program challenges students with daily hands-on practical interaction with horses in a variety of different environments, health issues and training levels, as well as broadens their overall level of equine understanding.

Classes and practicum work in stable management, anatomy and physiology, reproduction, marketing and career development, all compliment the hands-on side of the program to ensure a well-rounded education.  Students will also receive an introduction to - and be able to interact with - breeding practices, and disciplines of carriage driving, racing, and World Equestrian Games disciplines.  Former student Heidi Bruner from Indiana commented, “My expectations for this course exceeded everything I could ever imagine” and former student Amelia Clyatt from California stated, “The opportunities that have arisen and the knowledge that I’ve gained has literally changed my life.”

Through a comprehensive curriculum and small class size, which ensures adequate hands-on and individualized learning experiences, students will be prepared to seek entry level work or advance their current position in the industry upon graduation. Eighty-percent of the Spring, 2011 Semester graduates achieved full time employment in the equine industry within two weeks of completing the course.

Applications must be received by the Kentucky Horse Park no later than December 1, 2011, for spring enrollment consideration.  To apply please contact Sheila Forbes at 859-233-4305 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information or to receive an application by email or mail.

Photo top (c) www.jennifermunson.com.  Photo bottom by James Shambhu. 

                                                                 -30 -

The Kentucky Horse Park is a working horse farm/theme park and equine competition facility dedicated to man's relationship with the horse.  The park is an agency of the Kentucky Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet that hosted more than one million visitors and campers, as well as 15,000 competition horses in more than 100 special events and horse shows in 2010.  The park is home to the National Horse Center which comprises more than 30 national and regional equine organizations.   Located at Exit 120, Interstate 75, just north of Lexington, the Kentucky Horse Park is The place to get close to horses.   

WHO: Clinicians from the Mounted Police in Lexington, Philadelphia, the U.S. Park Service, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police

WHAT:  Sensory training clinic open to the public, for horses of all breeds and disciplines. Improve your horse's self-confidence and obedience to your aids.  Training is done in-hand and under saddle. Riders are encouraged to work at their own pace/comfort level. Safety and building the horse’s trust is our first priority. Your riding skills will also get a boost during the equitation session with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

WHEN:  Sunday & Monday October 16 & 17, 2011

WHERE:  Kentucky Horse Park

WHY:  This clinic will help horses remain composed and obedient when confronting unfamiliar stimuli and objects. 

HOW:  For information contact: Anne Anderson 859/299-5744 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .  For registration, go to http://www.friendslexingtonmountedpolice.org/assets/pdf_files/2011%20Fall_Sensory_Clinic_cover_page_registration_forms_map.pdf  Auditors are welcome but must also register.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (August 29, 2011)—The Kentucky Horse Park’s International Museum of the Horse (IMH), in collaboration with the American Museum of Natural History, announced today that it will host the exhibition, The Horse, from October 22, 2011, through April 6, 2012. The IMH is a major lender to the exhibition.

"We are thrilled to be able to bring this world-class exhibition to Kentucky," said Bill Cooke, director of the Kentucky Horse Park’s International Museum of the Horse. "The American Museum of Natural History is truly one of the world’s great natural history museums, and they did a masterful job in developing an exhibition that not only illuminates the timeless union between humans and horses, but does so in an amazingly entertaining way. We are excited that this will be our first blockbuster-level exhibition while schools are in session. I have no doubt that both teachers and their students will love The Horse."

From the horse’s earliest ancestors grazing on the plains of what is now Nebraska, to a magnificent contemporary Deborah Butterfield horse sculpture, the eternal bond between horses and humans is explored in the largest equestrian traveling exhibition ever assembled. The Horse graphically portrays the horse’s impact on trade, transportation, labor, warfare, culture, and sports.  It showcases spectacular fossils, models, dioramas, and cultural objects from around the world, including many from the American Museum of Natural History’s world famous collections.

The New York Times called this exhibition "charming and illuminating" and "an uplifting example of how horses enrich our lives."  The New York Post said, "You absolutely must see it."

The Horse is divided into six major sections: The Evolution of Horses; Horses and Hunters; Domesticating Horses; The Nature of Horses; How We Shaped Horses and Horses Shaped Us; and, An Enduring Bond. These themes are illuminated by more than 140 artifacts and cultural objects from around the world including a complete Samurai saddle from Japan, a full suit of 15th-century German horse armor, and Native American horse accoutrements. Bringing the exhibit to life are a stunning 220-square foot diorama that depicts the horse’s ancestors, a high-definition video that captures in slow motion the rippling muscles of a Thoroughbred race horse, and an interactive video of a life-size horse where visitors can investigate a horse’s pulmonary and digestive systems and other biological traits.

"This extraordinary, entertaining and informative exhibition is a perfect fit for the Kentucky Horse Park, which exists to celebrate man’s relationship with the horse; a relationship that has endured through the millennia," said Kentucky Horse Park Executive Director John Nicholson.  "This amazing and most beautiful of creatures has never lost its ability to look for the good – and bring out the best – in mankind as a partner, teammate and friend.  That’s why we never lose our fascination with them, and why we are so excited to have this exhibition coming to our park."
 
The Horse is organized by the American Museum of Natural History, New York, in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, United Arab Emirates; the Canadian Museum of Civilization, Gatineau-Ottawa; The Field Museum, Chicago; and the San Diego Natural History Museum. Curator of the exhibition is Ross MacPhee.

"The human-horse relationship was almost predestined," MacPhee said. "Puny but clever, enterprising humans needed an animate energy source that was both mobile and controllable — hence the domestic horse. What no one could have foreseen was that, over the millennia, while we molded the horse to our ends, the horse also molded us by changing the scale and scope of what could be carried, traded, fought over, or used to make life better — in short, civilization as we know it."

For more information on The Horse, go to www.amnh.org/exhibitions/horse/, www.imh.org, or www.kyhorsepark.com.

Admission to The Horse is included with park admission, or a "museums only" ticket may be purchased for $8 for adults or $4 for children ages 7-12, which also includes admission to the entire International Museum of the Horse, the Al Marah Arabian Horse Galleries and the American Saddlebred Museum.

Park Hours and Rates: Through November 6, the park is open seven days a week.  Admission is $16 for adults, $8 for children 7-12. From November 7 to March 14, the park is open Wednesdays through Sundays.  Winter admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 7-12. Children age 6 and under are always admitted free of charge.  Admission includes the International Museum of the Horse – a Smithsonian Affiliate, and the American Saddlebred Museum.

Editor's Note:  High resolution images from the exhibition are available for use with this release by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .  

Watch a video walk-through of the exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History.

Adoptable Horses from the
Kentucky Equine Humane Center
For more information about these or any of the other adoptable horses, contact them at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or www.kyehc.org.

WINSTON
Breed: Quarter Horse Cross
Color: Dark Bay
Age: 5 years
Gender: Gelding
Height: 14.1
History: Pasture Pet
Suitability: Pleasure/Show

Winston is a nice gelding who is ready for a new home. He is easy to handle and groom and LOVES attention. Winston has a great personality, and is a beautiful mover. Winston is learning some ground work, has been ridden under saddle and will need additional training with both. Winston gets along well with both geldings and mares when turned out in a herd.

SAMMY
Breed: Thoroughbred
Color: Bay
Age: 2 years
Gender: Gelding
Height: 15.2
History: No Training

Sammy is a blank page! He has been residing in a pasture with light handling and growing like a weed. He is cooperative and wants to learn. Sammy currently resides with geldings, mares and gets along well for being a youngster. Sammy loves being groomed and is good for the vet and farrier. He is sound and has potential for any discipline.

SAM
Breed: Thoroughbred
Color: Bay
Age: 2 years
Gender: Gelding
Height: 15.1
History: No Training

Like Sammy, above, Sam too is a blank page!  Sam has been doing ground work and has been started under saddle. He is cooperative and wants to learn. Sam currently resides with geldings, mares and gets along well for being a youngster. Sam loves being groomed and is good for the vet and farrier. He is sound and has potential for any discipline.

MIKE
Breed: Thoroughbred
Color: Bay
Age: 7 years
Gender: Gelding
Height: 16.1
History: Racing

Mike is a very kind gentle giant. He stands well for farrier and grooming. His temperament is so easy going all the volunteers enjoy grooming him. The highlight of his day is receiving a peppermint candy from a cheerful visitor! Having been significantly raced in the past we feel he will be best suited for trail or flat work.