Texas A&M University: Wagonhound Land & Livestock, the McDaniel Charitable Foundation and Heritage Place Complete Funding of the Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair

Source: News Release

Wagonhound Land & Livestock, the McDaniel Charitable Foundation and Heritage Place Complete Funding of the Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair

COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS – The College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVMBS) at Texas A&M University is pleased to announce that the Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair has been fully funded. In April of 2011 the Burnett Foundation of Fort Worth awarded a $2.5 million challenge grant to the CVMBS to establish an endowed chair in honor of Dr. Glenn Blodgett, a leader in equine veterinary medicine and a 2011 CVM Distinguished Alumnus. Gifts from Wagonhound Land and Livestock, the McDaniel Charitable Foundation, Heritage Place, along with Perry Johns of J&M Steel Company completed the challenge grant, bringing the endowment total to more than $5 million.

“Wagonhound Land and Livestock is honored to support the Burnett Foundation’s lead in establishing the Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair at Texas A&M University,” said Art Nicholas, owner of Wagonhound Land and Livestock. “Glenn has been a special friend to Wagonhound and horse enthusiasts in general, and it’s wonderful to have him recognized in such an important way - one that will forever contribute to the betterment of the equine industry.” Wagonhound Land and Livestock is a cattle and horse operation based in Douglas, WY. Nicholas and his wife, Catherine, have been supporters of equine academic programs for many years.

“I’m invested in the success of Texas A&M University and its equine programs,” said Missy Lyons of the McDaniel Charitable Foundation, located in Galveston. “Helping to complete the Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair gives me the assurance that strong leadership will continue to be in place as the Equine Initiative moves into the future.”

“As a member of the Equine Initiative Development Committee, Dr. Charlie Graham has kept Heritage Place abreast of the successes of this unique program. Texas A&M is at the forefront of the equine industry in terms of education and research, and we wanted to do our part to make sure that the Equine Initiative is successful into the future,” said Jeff Tebow of Heritage Place, located in Oklahoma City, OK.

The Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair will help support the Equine Initiative, a collaboration between the CVMBS and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University. The Equine Initiative utilizes the expertise available at Texas A&M to build an equine program that will graduate industry leaders and generate research and veterinary medical care that will improve the equine industry and welfare of the horse. The Equine Initiative is built on four major imperatives including; curriculum enhancement, outreach and engagement expansion, facility construction, and partnership development.

"Both Dr. Glenn Blodgett and the Burnetts are icons in Texas, the ranching industry and the horse industry in general," said Dr. Eleanor M. Green, Carl B. King Dean of Veterinary Medicine. "It is special for the Burnett Foundation to honor Dr. Blodgett in this meaningful way, and we are so appreciative of those donors who helped us to meet the challenge the Burnett Foundation laid out for us. The Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair will contribute significantly to lasting excellence of the Equine Initiative at Texas A&M in the number one equine state in the nation."

Dr. Jim Heird, Executive Professor and Coordinator of the Equine Initiative, said, “The Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair is a tremendous honor and recognition of a fabulous horseman and Aggie. Glenn is a leader, a friend of Texas A&M, and an internationally known breeder of great horses. This endowed chair ensures that the Equine Initiative will have nationally recognized leadership into the future. The support of the Burnett Foundation, Wagonhound Land & Livestock, Heritage Place and the McDaniel Charitable Foundation is a humbling statement of the importance of what we are accomplishing at Texas A&M. There is no way to truly say thank you to these outstanding leaders of our industry.”

If you would like to learn more about the Glenn Blodgett Equine Chair or the Equine Initiative, please contact the Equine Initiative office at (979) 845-6098.

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