by Margo Callaghan

Muffie Harvey left Bennington on horseback June 21 with a clear goal and path: to ride her Appaloosa horse from Bennington to Burlington to help raise funds to support the fight against breast cancer. Last Thursday afternoon, Harvey, along with her horse Molly, found themselves in Shelburne at the home of Richard and Stefanie Marko. Through a mutual friend, Shannon Warden, Harvey connected with Stefanie, and the Markos were happy to offer Harvey and Molly "shelter from the storm" Thursday evening and a place for them to sleep on the final night of their journey.

"I've had an enormous amount of support along the way from complete strangers," Harvey reported before saddling up Molly for the last leg of her journey on Friday morning. "My mother, who is doing great, was not all that happy that I was taking off on the ‘adventure.' She'll be happy when I come home." Besides her family, Harvey received support from the College of St. Joseph's in Rutland, where she teaches physical education and is the soccer coach.

The real journey began 20 years ago when Harvey's mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Harvey has been planning this trip for 20 years to honor the courage of her mother, a two-time breast cancer survivor.

"I had four nights of lodging planned before I left Bennington. The rest was a crap shoot," said the spirited Harvey regarding the task of finding accommodations for a horse and rider on the 12-day-trek. By 3 p.m. Friday afternoon, she and Molly were slated to ride down Church Street in Burlington for their final leg of the adventure.

Would she do it again? "Absolutely," Harvey replied, going on to say that she hopes to turn it into an annual fundraiser and to have other riders join her next year.

Anyone interested in donating to support Harvey's efforts to raise $100,000 for breast cancer research can do so by calling the Reincarnation Upscale Resale and Fabulous Finds shop in Rutland at 802-282-4464, or through the American Cancer Society's website www.cancer.org/docroot/DON/DON_0.asp