The Dressage Foundation (TDF) is pleased to announce the winning horse of the TDF x Novella Equestrian “Treasured Horses” Shirt Contest, HD Harkness (aka “Hark”). Hark, owned by Mary Chris Foxworthy (MI), will now be honored with a brand-new Novella Equestrian shirt in his name.
TDF x Novella Equestrian “Treasured Horses” Shirt Contest was a special event for TDF’s “Treasured Horses, Treasured Teachers” fundraiser to benefit TDF's Riding School Fund. TDF's Riding School Fund provides much-needed grants to riding schools and lesson programs across the country to help them remain open, care for their lesson horses, and introduce new riders to the sport. Novella Equestrian, founded and owned by Taryn Young, is a riding apparel brand and small business that specializes in thoughtfully designed shirts, breeches, and more inspired by real horses and their stories.
Hark is a 28-year-old Morgan gelding who joined Mary Chris’ family as a two-year-old by popular vote: Mary’s family collected a variety of horse sale videos and presented each to a group of friends, who then voted on which horse to buy. Hark was the unanimous choice!
For the 26 years following that vote, Hark has been Mary Chris’ loyal sidekick throughout her dressage and carriage driving journeys. In 2025, Mary Chris and Hark became Team #929 in TDF’s beloved Century Club, which celebrates horse and rider teams whose combined ages equal 100 years or more. When not competing, Hark “authors” a series of children’s books and visits schools and libraries for hands-on experiences with the “author.” In 2023, Breyer honored his accomplishments by creating the HD Harkness limited-edition model.
Mary Chris says, “Hark is a one-in-a-million horse. We are blessed to be his humans, and we love him so very much!”
The Dressage Foundation is grateful to honor Hark, as well as the countless other horses submitted through the “Treasured Horses, Treasured Teachers” fundraiser.
While the TDF x Novella contest has drawn to a close, the “Treasured Horses, Treasured Teachers” fundraiser is still open. All donations support TDF’s Riding School Fund, which will announce its first grant recipients this Fall. The Riding School Fund reflects TDF’s commitment to supporting the people, horses, and programs that help dressage thrive at every level. By investing in riding schools and their lesson programs, TDF hopes to help ensure that more riders can discover and pursue the sport.
If you’d like to donate and honor your own treasured horse, please visit https://bit.ly/3Tgb2pv.
To discuss major gift support for the Riding School Fund, please reach out to Jenny Johnson, TDF’s Executive Director, at 402-434-8585 or jenny@dressagefoundation.org. Support for this Fund is needed and greatly appreciated.
The Dressage Foundation
The Dressage Foundation is a 501(c)(3), non-profit, tax-exempt, donor-driven organization that is dedicated to educating, supporting, and advancing the sport of dressage. The organization solicits contributions, appropriately allocates the donations, and awards grants and scholarships to dressage riders, judges, instructors, breeders, high performance teams, nonprofit equestrian organizations, and more. For more information, please visit www.dressagefoundation.org.
