| American Paint Horse Association pioneer, Duke Neff, receives high honor
FORT WORTH, TEXAS - One of the earliest proponents of the American Paint Horse breed, Duke Neff of Pleasant Hill, Mo., was honored recently with the highest award given by the American Paint Horse Association (APHA). During the 2009 APHA Fall World Championship Show, Neff received the honor, a fitting tribute to someone who has been a champion for the Paint Horse both inside and outside the show ring.
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The Distinguished Service Award is given annually to a special APHA member who has helped the association make significant strides through the years. Neff was recognized in 2009 for more than 40 years of exemplary service to APHA in an effort to advance the association and improve the breed both locally and nationally.
During those 40 years of service, Neff has been a leader in promotion of the Paint Horse breed. Neff was involved in the establishment of the breed magazines that the association still publishes today and helped create a video, entitled “No Two Alike,” that was a popular promotion piece. In addition, Neff’s own Paint Horse, Prairie Doll, was the first Paint Horse to carry the Kansas City Chiefs flag down the football field at games -- a tradition that has been re-established by the Chiefs. That same horse accompanied the Chiefs to the very first 1967 Super Bowl, according to Neff.
Neff was also involved in the establishment of the infrastructure of the American Paint Horse Association and its show programs. He served on many committees and was a National Director from 1968-1982 as well as a member of the APHA Executive Committee in 1973. In the show ring program development, he helped form the qualification rules of the APHA Regional Clubs and the multi-judge Paint-O-Rama concept used at shows. Neff is a qualified APHA judge and will judge his 200th show this year. He was instrumental in organizing and establishing many APHA Paint Horse clubs throughout the nation.
In addition to having an eye for the winner in the show ring, he also bred and raised quality Paint Horses. Nine of those horses went on to become APHA Champion award winners.
More about the American Paint Horse Association
Currently, American Paint Horses are being registered at APHA’s Fort Worth, Texas, headquarters at a rate of more than 35,000 horses each year. APHA has registered more than 958,000 horses in 59 nations and territories since it was founded 47 years ago, and now serves approximately 85,000 active members around the world. APHA, a non-profit organization, prides itself on community involvement and educating the public about the beauty and talent of the breed. Among its many activities, APHA works to preserve bloodlines and maintain the outstanding characteristics of Paint Horses. For more information, visit the Association’s Web site at apha.com or call (817) 834-2742.
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