KIND MAN GAVE HIS LAST $80 TO SAVE A PLOW HORSE BUT THEY WROTE HISTORY TOGETHER.
You are going to hear one of the most lovely and amazing stories in the world of horses.
This is the true story of Harry de Leyer, a resident of the mythical realm, and his gorgeous horse, Snowman. Harry had just invested $80 on a horse to drive a plough, but he had no idea how the rest of his and his wife’s lives would be radically changed.
In 1928, Harry de Leyer was born in The St. Oedenrode, Noord-Brabant, in the Netherlands. He was raised on a horse farm and regularly competed in show jumping competitions, but many Dutch horses were abducted when the Germans invaded Holland in 1940.
Before being engaged as a horse groom, Harry worked on tobacco farms in the South where he showed off his riding prowess and knowledge. Harry paid the meat dealer $60 for the skinny horse with the cut knees, the lost shoe, and tackle rubs all over his body, plus $20 for delivery.
Since he shared Harry’s goal for a quiet horse for himself and his kids, a nearby doctor bought the Snowman from Harry. At the end of each school year, Harry usually sold a number of his ponies. The doctor asked Harry if he could take care of Snowman at his farm since he was tired of him.
Harry chose to test Snowman over a four-foot fence since he was curious about his capacity to jump out of the paddocks. They won the Triple Crown at Madison Square Gardens in 1958, just two years after Harry saved Snowman from the butcher man.
On the other hand, a snowman at Madison Square Gardens in 1959 became the first horse in history to win both the American Horse Shows Association Horse of the Year and the Professional Horseman’s Association Champion. The Snowman gained notoriety all throughout the nation and was given the moniker “Cinderella Horse.”
He stopped competing in 1962 and devoted the rest of his life to Harry. He even received a formal retiring ceremony in 1969 at the New Madison Square Gardens’ National Horse Show. After he turned 26 years old, Snowman’s health started to deteriorate, and he passed away in 1974 from renal failure.
Despite the best efforts of his vets, Snowman was put to sleep with his loving owner by his side and buried in his own unique section of the grass pasture. May his soul rest in peace forever.
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