July 2021 Issue

Page 6 July 2021 EAST COAST EQUESTRIAN By Suzanne Bush Philadelphia boasts lots of traditions, from cheese steaks to Tastykakes, from the Dad Vail Regatta to the Reading Termi- nal Market. There is art and music and history—celebrated in world-class museums and concert venues. These traditions in aggregate offer a portrait of a city that is rich in culture, history and whimsy. One of Philadelphia’s cultural icons has been celebrated in art and in Hollywood. Nope, it’s not Rocky. It’s Philadelphia’s urban cowboys and Concrete Cowgirls, riding a century-old tradition into the future—overcoming obstacles as mundane as traffic and com- plex as neighborhood gentrifica- tion. And now, aided by a new non-profit, Philadelphia Urban Riding Academy (PURA), www. thepura.org , a permanent home is on the horizon. Architects are drawing up plans that will turn an aging bocce court on North Dag- gett Street into a stable. Not just any stable, though, according to Erin Brown, Executive Director of PURA, “the most epic riding facil- ity in the City of Philadelphia!” PURA worked with the City of Philadelphia and City Council- man Curtis Jones, Jr., to acquire the property, which is on the edge of Haddington Woods and Cobbs Creek Park. There is space behind the building for pasture, and the trails start just outside the building which will become the barn. Brown says there will be enough space inside for about 20 stalls. “The backyards have been gentrified,” Brown explains. “PURA is an extension—an outgrowth of the original Fletcher Street [Stable]. It’s going to carry A Permanent Home Is on the Horizon for Urban Riders on the legacy of the Philadelphia urban cowboys.” Focus on the Future On a recent hot, humid day Brown and several of her friends and PURA supporters stood outside the Nicholas A. Pucciarelli Senior Citizen Bocce Court and talked about what this iteration of urban riding means to them. Ivannah-Mercedes, the actress who played Esha in the film Concrete Cowboy reminded Brown that they were both members of Future Farmers of America (FFA) as youngsters. The organization’s vi- sion continues to inspire them. “FFA provides the next generation of leaders who will change the world.” Ivannah-Mercedes says that her opportunity as an actress was a direct result of her ability to ride a horse, which she learned at Fletcher Street. While she may not stay in Philadelphia, she says her heart and hopes will always be there. “Regardless of what happens in my life, I want to know there is an organization here that is going to help my nephews to learn about this culture that I love so much and give them experiences to help them. Half of my acting came about because I rode horses here in Philadelphia. It would be arrogant of me to ignore that.” Liam Thorpe, at three years old the youngest Concrete Cow- boy, takes lessons at Belmont Stables. His grandmother, Rita Thorpe, reminded the group of the larger mission at hand. “The A in PURA stands for Academy,” she says. PURAwill offer after-school tutoring, and they’re discussing a potential partnership with More- house College to provide college readiness counseling. “Basically, we’re bridging worlds of diversity,” Brown says. “Here we’ll be able to have a broader reach and more diverse opportunities—not just for African American youth, but for people in general.” She says she’s anxious to reach “a different side of the city, where there haven’t been horses for close to 30 years. Kids need outlets and they need recreation and I want to be a part of that to help a child.” It Began with a Movie Concrete Cowboy, recently released on Netflix, stars Edris Elba. The film, directed by Philadelphian Ricky Staub, has a back-story almost as compelling as the story captured by the film. Staub was interested in the urban riders at Fletcher Street Sta- ble, in Strawberry Mansion, and became friends with one of the riders there, Eric Miller. Together they planned a movie about how the Fletcher Street Stable changed the courses of young lives by giv- ing inner-city young people a safe place to be, mentors who enforced rules and the opportunity to ride and care for horses. And they also planned a future for the urban riders—a future that would be immune to gentrification and the vagaries of city traffic. They cre- ated PURA, to create and sustain the permanent home for current riders and future generations of ur- ban equestrians. Tragically, before filming started, Miller was killed. Brown was also a longtime friend of Miller’s and she took over as Executive Director of PURA after Miller’s death. She had started riding at Fletcher Street as a six- year-old and has competed success- fully both locally and nationally. Raising Money, Raising Hopes Brown says the board of directors is working behind the scenes to secure corporate sponsorships, and she has worked with Missy Clark of North Run in Vermont and Florida, to promote Concrete Cowgirls, a program to educate equestrians by opening doors to diverse worlds within the equine industry. They have a GoFundMe page (search Raising $ for a Permanent Stable) set up to help raise the $2 million they believe the project will cost. People can also donate through the organization’s website, www. thepura.org . Brown says that attracting kids to the programs will be the easiest part of the process. “They’ll see horses here. They just always wan- der into the barn. History repeats itself,” she says. When the kids come in, the process will be very straightforward. “Here’s a release form, take this to your mother. See you tomorrow.” She says that she plans to ask a lot in terms of commitment and dedication of the young people who come to the barn. “Coming from growing up on Fletcher Street, I want to bring a more structured environment than I and my peers had growing up. We discovered as children that we would have done a lot more things they asked of us because we want- ed to be around the horses.” “It’s such a perfect cause,” Rita Thorpe says. “And it needs to be in more than one place. When I was a kid there were barns everywhere. We all kind of knew each other. The world was a better place when there were more horses.” An old bocce court in Philadelphia will soon become a bustling, state of the art stable, capable of housing 20+ horses and the home to the Philadelphia Urban Riding Academy. Liam Thorpe, right, 3 years old and a future Concrete Cowboy, takes riding lessons at Belmont Stbles. Photos by Suzanne Bush