02/13/2026
Big News at JbarK Training Stables and Riding Lessons
I have taken a job at Morningside University as the administrative Coordinator for the agriculture and aviation department. This was a very unexpected opportunity! I have put a lot of thought and prayers into the decision to take the job. This will be the first time in my adult life that I have an 8 to 5 job and work for someone other than myself.
This past several months I have been slowly merging our family business with a family out in Utah. They are now doing most of the day to day responsibilities. That has left me with a lot of time on my hands.
I truly feel that God has hand picked this opportunity for me. So many things are lining up in my mind; my kids no longer need me to have a flexible schedule, my work experience is a perfect fit for this job, I won’t have as much stress trying to run a business on my own, I will have a set schedule that doesn’t change day to day, the benefits of this job are very beneficial to my family, and it is has already boosted my confidence. This is also a big help financially. Farming has its ups and downs and this will give my family more stability.
With that being said the hardest part of taking this job is that I will no longer be able to give riding lessons. I have been giving riding lessons for over 20 years. I know I am going to be letting a lot of great families down! I do not take that lightly. I have become friends with each and every family that has come to our farm for lessons. I loved bringing the joy of horses into your lives. I have watched so many of your kids grow in size and ability.
My horses are also growing. They are growing older every year. By the end of last year I was starting to really stress over how I could keep giving lessons on horses that were all in their later years. I could tell my horses were tired and not performing their best anymore. I was starting to feel guilty for making them have full time jobs. I knew I couldn’t afford to buy new younger horses for my more advanced students and I didn’t know if buying expensive joint supplements was going to be enough to get me through the 2026 season. I feel like over half my students needed younger/faster horses and I just wasn’t sure how I was going to make that happen this year.
I feel that my horses have earned their retirement. Most of my lesson horses would be in their seventies if they were people. I know they loved being loved on by so many people but the work was hard and frustrating to them and I feel like a frustrated horse can be a liability.
I did consider doing lessons after my office hours. After thinking of the 25+ families I give lessons to, I knew it would not be possible to get all of my students scheduled into those few hours a day/week. So instead of saying I will do some lessons I have decided that I will just have to be done with lessons at this time. I was afraid that I would end up working all night every night, cramming lessons in, which would take all the joy out of it for me and the horses. That is not fair to your families or mine. My heart is sad that his chapter of my life has come to an end and I feel lucky to have met you all!
I am so proud of your kid’s/kids’ accomplishments as riders!
I appreciate your business and friendship very much!
Sincerely
Jennifer Copenhaver
