Region 10 prides itself on the ability of its members and delegates to get along. This was not always the case. In 2002 Mary Anne Grimmell, former IAHA President and Region 10 Director, wrote about how Region 10 came to be in the linked article. It makes for interesting reading and illustrates how far we have come!
How Region 10 Got Started
By Mary Anne Grimmell
“Once upon a time, the officers of IAHA were chosen by their friends. My husband John became IAHA Secretary, when the sitting Secretary asked him if he would replace him. We had a family pow-wow and decided that John had something to offer IAHA so we would sell a horse a year to pay the costs; it almost worked.
“Then Yale Freed came to the Boston convention with these incredible, democratic concepts of Regions, delegates, and elections. The people in attendance approved this concept and voted it in. The sitting officers said they would take this back to their first meeting and decide how to proceed. A near riot ensued, and the ‘people’ said ‘no way;’ they wanted it done now. Well, suddenly the old regions were gone, and the new regions were in place with no one to run them. At that point, IAHA was without a Board of Directors for about six weeks while everyone tried to sort themselves out and elect a Director and board of delegates.
“Minnesota had been a part of Region 3 (Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Montana and Wyoming), and we liked it that way. I am not certain where Wisconsin was, but I believe they were with Iowa, Illinois, and Ohio at least. They liked their region also. One problem we did not have was worry over what to do with our Regional money. None of us had any.
“The new Region 10 met immediately–Wisconsin on one side of the table, Minnesota on the other. For some reason, and I can’t remember why, we didn’t much like one another, and I know we were not happy about this state of affairs. Our leaders, Bill Trapp (WI) and John Hay (MN), were there, but obviously our first order of business was to elect a Director. Both men were nominated and of course there was a tie vote. Another vote was taken, and Bill Trapp was elected by a majority of one vote. John Hay admitted later that he changed his vote, and we hated him for it.
“I clearly remember our first discussions which always started with ‘Minnesota does this’ or ‘Wisconsin does that,’ which didn’t help our intolerance level at all. Suddenly we got smart. We decided that no one could say Wisconsin or Minnesota, we could only say Region 10. It worked, and we became one of the strongest and best Regions in the country, and we still are.”
Sadly Mary Anne left us in 2010 but her legacy lives on.
Mary Anne Grimmell
Born October 13th, 1926 In Kimball, MN Died November 30th, 2010. Mary Anne was the third daughter of William Emil and Emma Edith Leppa of Kimball, MN. She worked as a registered nurse in Minneapolis until her marriage to Dr. John Grimmell, after which she served in many volunteer and elective roles. She was an Arabian and Pinto horse show steward, judge, and commissioner, managed GB Arabian Farms, and served as President of International Arabian Horse Association from 1995 to 2000. In 2009 she was elected to the Pinto Horse Association Hall of Fame and was also a member of the Arabian Judges Hall of Fame. Mary Anne was a tireless advocate and mentor with a special interest in youth and education. It was during her term as Regional Director that she led the establishment of the Region 10 Scholarship program which was named after her following her death as a memorial. One interesting fact is that one of GB Arabians foals was chosen to be the ‘model’ for the introduction of the Ford Pinto.
Mary Anne was a beloved friend and mentor to so many people in Region 10 and is greatly missed but her legacy is the horses that she bred, the scholarships that she championed, and the love that she left for the rest of us to keep and share.