I asked Kailey if she would write a short post about Ace so we could all remember his story. I didn’t think we would ever own a horse, but God had a different plan. Many of you probably remember seeing the paint pony or had Kailey offer to saddle him up and give you or your children rides. Kailey truly loved giving our family, friends, and customers a ride on Ace. Did you get a chance to ride him?

By Kailey Mentink

Anyone who has been out to our farm and had a tour might remember the little paint pony who would stand at the fence and whinny a greeting as they came close. Today I share with sadness that a few weeks ago, we lost Ace to an illness that took him quickly and peacefully.

How Ace Came into our Life

From the time I could talk, I begged my parents for a horse. They tried to explain they didn’t have the land, the money, the feed. It all fell on deaf ears. I just kept begging. My mom would sigh and say, “Well, if a horse walks into our yard, then you can have a horse.”

And you can guess what happened.                                           

My pony was brown, white, and black; and he shared the same name as my favorite book character’s horse. Ace. Our neighbors had been trying him out and had taken him on a walk down the road (and into our yard, I might add). I was supposed to be in bed, but I watched at the window the whole time that pony was in sight. Ace’s owners had been praying for the right family to take in Ace and give him a forever home. When our neighbors decided against buying Ace, Mom and Dad gave us kids an early Christmas present and gave Ace his forever home.

Our whole family was excited, but I was overjoyed – no, past that – I was in love! Ace was a dream-come-true! For over ten years he gave our whole family rides – and while other pets came and went, Ace was always there. I can’t even start to count how many people Ace gave rides to in just the years we had him, but it was a lot. For sure, he had his moments. He was, after all, a pony. I remember the first time I tried barrel racing on him, and he took off at a terrifying speed, veered off the course and slid to a stop at the gate, clearly saying he didn’t want to do the barrels. Or the time he ran toward a low shed (with me on his back) and scraped me off on the roof.

But although he was sometimes a challenge to me, he was as gentle as a lamb with young or inexperienced riders. Ten years ago I was introduced to horses with Ace, and now recently my younger sister Annika was beginning to start her own horse journey with him. He was a good horse for beginners. Even before she turned two, my sister Lillian was always begging for rides on “Ace-horse”. 

Final Thoughts

I have so many memories of Ace. He lived a good, long life into his early thirties (which is pretty old for a horse) and he was active and happy up to the end. I’m thankful for all the time I had with him and that God directed him into our yard. We’ll all miss Ace, but we can always remember the happy memories we made with him.