Meet Your Candidate: Ray Burchett
Ray Burchett recently announced that he will again be running for the Board of Directors seat for Territory VI. Ray is currently the Board member representing the territory.
Even though most members of Territory VI know Ray, we thought we would provide a brief synopsis of his history with Appaloosas. Ray has been involved with the Appaloosa horse for 54 years. He started riding horses when he was 12 years old. At that time, he would work at the local stable doing stalls, brushing horses, etc., just so he could ride. He was given his first horse by his uncle which was a Palomino.
Ray was introduced to Appaloosas by his first wife. She had two appaloosas. He started shoeing and training horses and eventually started to train full time. His first Appaloosa was a stud that he bought at a sale. He gelded the horse and took it to the World Show in 1973. His wife placed with the horse in the Saddle Seat classes. Ray then worked for an appaloosa owner and breeder named Dr. Bullock in Oklahoma. He also worked in Texas for two years before meeting his current wife, Connie Burchett. They were married and he moved to Pennsylvania in 1986. He has been there since that time, only recently retiring from training and showing. Ray has also been an ApHC carded judge since 1980.
What made you run for the Board of Directors?
Ray had previously been on regional club boards in Michigan and the Indian Territory Club in Oklahoma. When he moved to Pennsylvania he joined the board of the Keystone Appaloosa Club, where he has been president for around 20 years. When he ran for the National Board of Directors, he didn’t feel that the director was listening to the territory members.
He thought he had a lot of experience and might be able to help.
Thoughts on his time as a Board Member
Ray feels that he has brought a lot of knowledge and insight to the ApHC board. He stated emphatically that he always votes for what he thinks is best for the Appaloosa Horse Club and his territory. He votes his opinion and feels his voting record reflects this. There are times when he is the only dissenting vote. He acknowledges that he has voted incorrectly at times over the past 14 years. He sometimes not understood all the details of something and has felt misled sometimes. Though he has voted his opinion at all times, he has allowed for new information to change his opinion when he is presented with more information or facts.
Ray has served on almost all of the committees including the executive committee, trail, judging, rules and youth committee.
Thoughts on issues facing the Appaloosa Horse Club
World Show Qualifications: Ray does feel that World Show Qualifications are necessary. He worries about what might happen to the regional clubs if World Show Qualifications are abolished. He does believe the qualification system needs to be revised and revamped as it is not working very well as it stands currently.
Office Inefficiency: He understands that this is an issue for a lot of members. He knows that the office is understaffed and is hopeful that the new Executive Secretary can resolve of lot of the staffing issues.
Registrations: He stated that registrations for 2021 were up. While the numbers are still not great, it is a move in the right direction. He believes that if many of the programs were revamped, registrations may rise with those changes.
One of the main concerns that Ray sees is a lack of marketing.
A number of years ago, the marketing budget was removed and there has subsequently been no money in the budget allotted for marketing. Many aspects of the ApHC could benefit from marketing including the trail, endurance and racing programs.
Ray is not on social media by design.
However, he is always available via email or phone. He is happy to talk to any member about their concerns.
