A recipient of the USHJA Lifetime Achievement Award, the Pennsylvania Horse Show Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Professional Horseman’s Association’s Frank Hawkings Lifetime Achievement Award and the USEF Pegasus Medal of Honor, among countless other distinctions, legendary horseman Ray “Poppy” Francis passed away over the weekend, putting an exclamation mark on a tragic week of loss within the horse show community. Both media executive Mason Phelps and ringmaster John Franzreb also passed away last week, leaving tremendous legacies and deep voids behind.

A member of the National Show Hunter Hall of Fame, Francis held numerous roles within the industry, from riding to training, judging and breeding.

Francis, alongside his wife Cheryle, owned and operated Offington Stables, producing countless winners in the hunter and equitation ranks.

The Plaid Horse sends its most sincere condolences to Cheryle and family during this difficult time.