 |
 |
|
|
The Moore family was not always involved in horses. It began in 1984, after the family moved back to Kansas City from Chicago. The older kids had been promised horses after the move. Come Christmas, Santa brought them two quarter type horses. The Moores spent the next few years trail riding at Benjamin Ranch, but never got involved in shows until they joined the Saddle and Sirloin Club in Kansas City. Ruth started showing quarter horses and riding in the mounted patrol for the club. The family’s first fox trotter, Silver’s Secret, was a foundation bred mare that stood out for one reason – she was a pure white horse. Larry adopted Silvie as his parade and riding horse, and she quickly became an icon for Kansas City. Larry and Silvie, along with the rest of the Moore family, rode in every major parade in the Kansas City area. Members of Saddle and Sirloin soon nicknamed the Moores as “the celebrities” of the club. The nickname stuck, and when the Moores went to name their own farm they decided to play off of it. Thus, Celebrity Farms was born.
Over the next few years, Ruth and some of the kids continued to show quarter horses in the Kansas City area. Along the way, she met many people with different types of horses, but she always seemed to be drawn to the foxtrot people. Soon, Ruth took a ride on a show quality fox trotter and decided she liked it a lot more than riding quarter horses. Some people say that once you ride a fox trotter, you can never go back, which is essentially what happened with the Moores. Slowly, the quarter horses were sold and fox trotters were brought in as replacements. By the time Jessica rode in her first show in 1991, Celebrity Farms was in the fox trot business completely.
The first national success for Celebrity Farms came in the form of a little sorrel mare. One of the first foals bred, born and raised at Celebrity Farms, Traveler's Lil Bit of Heaven debuted at the 1999 Three Year Old Futurity. Not only did she win the Mares class, she also took home the championship in the open division. She went on to win the Mid America Three Year Old Open Championship and was ready for the World Grand Championship. A last minute decision switched Lil Bits from the Open division to the Amateur division with Ruth holding the reins. Even though Ruth and Lil Bits had only ridden together once before their preliminary class, they ended up fourth out of 46 mares and placed fifth in the championship class! Lil Bits was shown for several more years, but never to the same success as her three year old year. However, her offspring have already shown signs of her talent and heart, so who knows where her story will end!
Over the years, many things have changed for the Moores. All five kids have graduated from college. The oldest three have married. The first grandchild arrived (finally!). The horses that started the family farm have been laid to rest. The farm has evolved into a business that includes breeding, raising, and showing Missouri Fox Trotters. But one thing has stayed the same. The acceptance of the first two horses into the Moore family made this a horse family, and a horse family is what this will always be.
Larry Moore anchors the award-winning 6pm and 10pm news on KMBC-TV Channel 9 News, the ABC affiliate in Kansas City. For the past three years, his 10pm newscast has been the #1 ranked newscast in the entire nation for all ABC affiliates. Larry holds the distinction of having anchored the news for more years than anyone in Kansas City. He has been involved in the coverage of almost every major news story that has affected the Kansas City area including the Hyatt skywalk disaster, Rep. Jerry Litton’s plane crash, the massive flood of 1993, the Chiefs’ Super Bowl Championship, the Royals’ World Series championship, and the plane crash and death of Gov. Mel Carnahan. Larry has been honored by the Missouri Broadcasters Association, the Kansas Broadcasters Association, the Missouri Radio and Television News Association and the Kansas City Press Club for his television news reporting and anchoring. He has been chosen best television news anchor by Kansas City Media Professionals and by the readers of Squire Publications, Pitch Weekly, Ingram’s Magazine, and Kansas City Magazine. Squire Publications editors and readers honored Larry as Kansas City TV Person of the Century. Kansas City Magazine named him as one of Kansas City’s Top 10 Celebrities, alongside George Brett, Buck O’Neil, and Len Dawson. Using his celebrity status to help many organizations, Larry devotes much of his community volunteer work to children. He helped organize the Greater Kansas City Dream Factory and has had a direct hand in granting many of the 5,000+ dreams for children with chronic or serious illnesses in the Kansas City area. With Larry’s help at fund-raising events, the Dream Factory raises more than $400,000 annually and has never had to turn a child away because of lack of funds. The Dream Factory chose Larry to receive the Dream Maker of the Year Award and gives college scholarships each year that bear his name. The American Cancer Society presented Larry, a cancer survivor, with the prestigious Ambassador of Hope Courage Award for the cancer educational campaign that he conducted on television and in the community by sharing his personal struggle with cancer. Fortunately, he has been in remission for over 15 years. He continues to receive a large number of inquiries each month from cancer patients who seek his advice and counsel. In the little spare time he has, Larry tends a large garden. As a certified master gardener, he successfully harvests high quality vegetables such as tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, peas, green beans, and potatoes every year. For gardening tips and more about Larry, check out "Larry's Page" at KMBC.com.
There is a saying that “behind every good man is a good woman”. In the Moore family, that holds extremely true. Larry credits Ruth for getting him where he is today. Ruth enjoyed handling all of his public appearances and schedules until she was paralyzed by a flu shot in November, 2005. Horses have become a major part of her therapy on her long road to recovery. Ruth’s horse passion started as a child growing up in St. Louis, but wasn’t fulfilled until after marriage and five children. Serving on many community boards and school committees, horses provide Ruth with an escape. A highlight was when she was a member of the Saddle and Sirloin Mounted Patrol for ten years.
Ruth was the first woman in the world named to a seminary college board when she became a board member of Conception Seminary College. She and Larry started the seminary’s first major fundraiser, an annual dinner/auction, which is still going strong today. For this and other community service, Ruth and Larry were knighted by the Pope. They are a Knight and Dame of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre. She also served for eleven years on the Dream Factory board as the Fundraiser and Marketing person. Ruth is currently on medical leave from Webster University, where she is the Community Relations Coordinator.
In June, 2009, to keep Ruth riding, Larry and Jessica surprised her with a very special mare - A Fancy Floozy. Floozy was the 2008 Senior Amateur World Grand Champion and an all around talented mare. It didn't take Ruth long to figure Floozy out; by August, 2009, the pair had won the Southern Classic Limited Amateur Championship as well as the Kansas City Regional Jackpot Championship. In September of 2009, they went on to win the Ladies 4 years and older World Grand Championship - a dream come true for Ruth.
Larry and Ruth have a total of five children – that’s right, Jessica is NOT an only child! If it is possible to have five kids that are as different as night and day, the Moore family has them. Jeff, the oldest son, is currently a research chemist in North Carolina. As a graduate of Creighton University, Jeff has worked at some of the most prestigious pharmaceutical companies over the past 15 years. He and his wife, Janice, make their home in the Raleigh-Durham area.
Jennifer, the oldest daughter, owns and operates Celebrity Kennels, a dog boarding facility. As a theatre major, Jennifer has performed across the country, from Los Angeles to Dayton, OH. Her acting and singing talents have been seen everywhere from stage performance to national television shows. She currently lives in Kansas City, MO, and is the proud mother of Emmett Thomas Maienza, the first grandchild for Larry and Ruth.
Monica, the middle daughter, works as a communications manager for the American Red Cross. She oversees 65 counties and is in charge of internal and external communications for the Blood Services division. Monica received her MPA from the University of Missouri. She and her husband, Rick Stoneking, currently live in Holt, Michigan.
Greg, the youngest son, is currently pursuing an MBA in Sports Management at San Diego State University. He hopes to become a part of a professional sports team, working on the management side of things. He is also in the middle of planning a November 20, 2010 wedding with his fiancee, Brooke. Greg currently lives in San Diego, CA.
Jessica, the youngest daughter, has recently returned to school to become a licensed massage therapist. She plans on using massage therapy for both humans and horses. As a MU graduate in animal science, Jessica is the horse person of the family. She rode in her first show on Ruler’s Special Angel when she was seven years old. Jessica had no idea what she was doing, but she had a great time anyway. Jessica went through several horses in the next few years, including Marker's Cracker Jack and Hard Copy's Susie Q. As she got older, she needed a horse that could carry her farther. She met her match in The Jazzman D - an older gelding that had been retired by his previous owners. In 1999, Jazz and Jessica took on the world, literally. That show season, they amassed over 30 blue ribbons and won every major championship that a youth rider could win, including the Youth World Grand Championship. Since taking care of all of the horses is a full-time job in itself, Jessica lives at Celebrity Farms to help her parents run the farm.
|
||
|
|
||
