Mary Gallagher is a new neighbor who moved from Grand Rapids to 8851 Stoney Creek Drive in April 2021. She and her daughter Emily have developed a passion for the Arabian horse and competitive riding. In 2005, at 37 years young, Mary started riding shortly after Emily began saddling up! Mary said, "As soon as we sat in the saddle, we both knew we would never leave." Lots of love. 

Years later, Mary and Emily have been riding with Rushlow's Arabians in Romulus, MI. Mary is much more satisfied with the drive there, having driven from Grand Rapids for over a decade. Since moving to Rushlow's, the Gallagher girls have earned National Championships! Emily has earned three National Championship titles, and Mary earned one. Emily has earned four Reserve National Championships, and Mary earned one; the Gallaghers have both also earned multiple National Top Ten. Emily is still riding and competing while attending the School of Veterinary Medicine at Auburn University in Alabama. Mary shared, "Emily has an Irish Sporthorse named Monbeg Apollo 11, whom she calls Clifford. Emily and Clifford are eventers, which means they compete in three-day events consisting of Dressage, Cross Country Jumping and Show Jumping."

Emily is now 23 and has a biology undergraduate degree in hand from Purdue University with a focus on genetics. Mary said, "I am the mother to two wonderful young adults." Her son Ben is 25 and has an undergraduate degree and a master's degree in aerospace engineering from Purdue University. He works for Blue Origin as a rocket scientist with a specialty as a test engineer on one of the big rockets. Ben has a lovely girlfriend named Leigh, who Mary adores. But Ben is unfortunately allergic to horses, so he does not participate with them, but he is their biggest fan and supporter! Ben is an avid rock climber and enjoys climbing both indoors and outdoors. He most recently took a trip to Utah in the Red Rock area and enjoyed climbing at Red River Gorge in Kentucky.

"There is nothing better than the partnership that develops between you and your horse; when a 1,200-pound animal trusts you and takes direction from you, knowing that you will keep him safe and put him in the position to shine, there is no better feeling of accomplishment. When everything clicks, the ride is so powerful."

— Mary Gallagher

Mary grew up in Concord, MA, and earned her undergraduate degree from Boston College in 1989 and a master's degree in speech-language pathology from the University of Virginia in 1991. She has worked clinically for many years in various settings, from the Children's Hospital at Yale to local schools here in Michigan. Since 2017, Mary has been applying her expertise in academia and is currently working as an online professor for Grand Valley State University and Emerson College in Boston. Her father continually inspired Mary. He instilled a love of animals and the outdoors and a multitude of life lessons we use in our riding. Mary reflected on the impact her father had on her life. "He taught me persistence, dedication, effective communication, kindness and humility. One of the best lessons is that after a fall, the best course of action is to get back up, figure out where things went wrong, learn from it and move on to better things." Sage advice.

Several years ago, Mary broke her right humerus falling off of a horse. She said, "It was one of those bad days when three bad decisions led to a real problem. Although the recovery was not ideal, and I ended up with a stainless steel rod and one screw in my arm, and the PT to recover the function of my arm and shoulder took nearly a year, I learned just how resilient a person can be when they want to accomplish something." Mary continued, "For me, it was to get back on the horse, ride and compete again. In difficult times in my life, the horse has been a haven. When things are awful, finding a horse who needs cleaning up and who needs the wind knots brushed out of its mane is more therapeutic than any other available option. On days when everything goes wrong, a ride can put it all in perspective and reset the mind to get back to figuring out where to go next. The barn in the morning, when the horses are quietly eating, is a place of possibilities. If you can stop and enjoy the quiet, the horse can teach you a lot about life."

Mary shared that participating in equine sports is a true blessing and privilege. One constant lesson is that the needs of the horse come first. Sometimes that means the horse gets a bath before you do, or he gets watered and fed before you do, or he needs to sit out a competition that you were really prepared for and looking forward to. This lesson is valuable in life — learning to evaluate who in a relationship has the most important needs at any given time and then learning to communicate about it makes for successful relationships all around.

Mary Gallagher's final words on her passion for horses and equestrians, "If you have ever been interested in riding, go take a lesson! Horse people are some of the hardest working, kindest people I have ever met. We want you to love the horse world as much as we do!"