“Okay, so now that we’ve agreed about using a business plan, I want to make one thing perfectly clear. No PowerPoint! I absolutely loathe that program; all those bullets and cutesy backgrounds and things.”

“Gee, Trix,” deadpanned Honey. “Why don’t you tell me how you really feel about it?”

“Well, I can’t help it. It’s just too cutesy. And you know I don’t do cutesy!”

“Yes ma’am!” Honey threw a mock salute. “So - a simple business plan - nothing fancy. But I do think that whatever we take with us should be printed again and put in sheet protectors. It’ll look more professional - more like a real busines proposal that way.”

“That sounds good. What else?”

“I think we’ll need more information than what you have here. Don’t get me wrong, the information is emotionally powerful, but Daddy is going to want to see some numbers.”

Trixie paused for a moment to think. “Maybe we can ask someone to contact these organizations for some concrete stuff.”

“Um hum - that sounds good.” Honey concentrated on scribbling down her notes. “Anything else?”

Trixie tapped her fingers on the tabletop for a moment. “I think that’s about it.” She ticked off the plan on her fingers.

  1. Introduction - needs to grab attention
  2. More detailed information - someone needs to do extra research
  3. Make a clean print and put in sheet protectors

“And then, assuming the group wants to do this, we’ll see what else we can come up with.”

Honey looked at her watch again. “Speaking of which, they should be getting here any moment.”

Trixie pretended to straighten a none-existent tie and shuffled her stack of papers importantly. Breathing in a deep sigh, she looked expectantly at Honey. “All right, I’m as ready as I’ll ever be…I think.”

Voices could be heard rapidly approaching the clubhouse. Honey winked at Trixie. “Don’t worry. You’ll do fine.”

The rest of the Bob-Whites started trickling into the clubhouse. Mart was the first to arrive. As he sat down, he leveled a mock glare at Trixie.

“Okay, toots’, this had better be good. I’m giving up my valuable time for this endeavor. Just think, I could be…oh, I don’t know…having a scrumptious Crabapple-Special right now.”

“Um, Mart, didn’t you just eat lunch a couple of hours ago?” inquired Honey innocently.

“Hey! I’ll have you know that apples are replete with nourishing vitamins and minerals, while bread bestows essential fibers and calcium. I’m at an essential period in my life. The nutrients I ingest now will play an important part in my physical development.” Mart patted his brawny chest importantly. “Do you want me to end up as some feeble man shuffling down the street because you denied me my appropriate gustatory enrichment?”

Honey and Trixie, who were choking back howls of laughter, were prevented from making a more suitable response when a male voice could be heard outside the clubhouse.

“Well I guess we know Mart is already here.”

“Do tell, what was your first clue?” another male voice answered back.

Jim and Brian appeared in the doorway with identical grins on their faces.

Mart gave them both a sour look. “I think you’ve both been hanging around those two too long.” He pointed at Trixie and Honey. “Did you have to mention clues in front of them?”

“Mart, my lad,” said Jim. “You need to look at things more positively. Think of how your life has benefited by your association with 'those two'.”

Brian nudged Jim’s arm as they sat down. “Now, now. Take pity of my brother. If his blood sugar drops too low, he won’t be able to fully concentrate on these important proceedings. And then the girls would have to repeat everything again.”

“Jolly jokers.” muttered Mart.

Finally the remaining two Bob-Whites, Diana and Dan, arrived. Assembling themselves around the table, all sets of eyes looked expectantly at Trixie and Honey. Trixie shot one last nervous glance at Honey who surreptitiously made a thumbs-up sign at her.

Trixie performed the usual pounding of the imaginary gavel on the tabletop to signify the opening of the meeting.

“I’d like to call this meeting to order,” said Trixie. Glancing quickly at her friends, she gathered her shaky courage and firmly pushed her nerves down to a manageable level. Come on girl - these are your friends. This will be easy. They’ve never let you down before. Just think of this as a dry run. “I’m ready to tell all of you about the idea I have.”

Trixie sat up as straight as possible and assumed her most professional voice. “As you recall, earlier this week I mentioned the possibility of our becoming more directly involved with the community; and that I could not tell you anything more until I spoke with someone else, someone who would also be involved.”

A chorus of affirmation met her words.

“Well, I was able to finally talk to that other person.”

“I don’t know about the rest of you,” interjected Diana, “but I’m simply dying of curiosity! Who is your mystery person?”

Trixie smiled and answered quietly. “Regan.”

Bewildered looks were exchanged around the table and a jumble of voices ensued.

“Regan!” “You needed to talk to Regan?” “Why did you need to talk to Regan?”

Trixie calmly waited for the din to die down, another smile twitching on her lips. “I believe the answer to your questions will become more obvious as soon as I tell you everything.”

“Um, folks, I think what Trixie is trying to tell us is to shut up and listen,” said Dan. “Go ahead Trix.”

“Thanks Dan. All right then… Yesterday, I told Regan about an idea I had about the horses.” Seeing that the group was about to bubble up again, Trixie raised up a hand to forestall the inevitable questions. “Think about it…what happens when we all start college? Even if some of us stay nearby, we won’t be able to help Regan hardly at all!”

Trixie gazed intently at each of her friends. Thoughtful expressions gradually gave way to ones of dismay as the reality of Trixie’s words sunk in.

Diana’s beautiful violet eyes pooled with tears. Dan stared downward, absently scraping the floor with his shoe, unable to look anyone in the eyes. Mart was struck silent, his usual flare for words momentarily abandoned. Brian, eyes suspiciously misty, quickly rubbed at them.

Jim, his hand briefly clenching his mouth, was the first to speak. “She’s right you know. We haven’t ever really talked about this. And to be honest, I know I haven’t even thought about it.”

Honey was quick to assess the situation. Sensing that all of the Bob-Whites were over their momentary shock, she was ready to help keep the momentum of the meeting going.

“Well, since Trixie has thought about it, why don’t we listen to her idea.”?

Everyone turned their attention back to Trixie, an intent look of expectation settling over the group.

Trixie nervously shuffled her stack of printouts. “The idea I mentioned to Regan was based on some of the horse units I saw in the Rose Parade. These special units had city kids riding the horses; you know, kids that normally don’t ever even get to see a horse. That’s what initially caught my attention and started me thinking. Actually it made me remember the summer I first met Honey.”

Trixie’s eyes got a far away look. “I wanted a horse so bad, I’m sure I was driving poor Moms crazy.” She shook her head briefly.

“Anyway, I figured that I’m hardly unique. I mean, we may be out in the country, but how many people can afford a horse? And then, as I started doing some research, I read about the involvement of the Police Activities League.”

“PAL does stuff like that?” Dan couldn’t keep silent anymore. “I didn’t know that. Wow!”

Trixie and the others smiled at his sudden, obvious enthusiasm. “I thought that might get your interest. Yes, there’s a league that takes and supervises some inner-city kids at a horse park.” She added softly, “I know how much you want other kids to have the same opportunities you’ve had.”

Trixie turned to look at Jim. “And I know you feel the same way. Well, something like this might be the best way for us to begin; start small, and see how it goes.”

Trixie quickly picked up her stack of papers again. “That’s why I brought this information for all of you to look at. It will help give you an idea of what other groups are doing. Why don’t you take a look at them and see what you think. Then we can all talk it over as a group.”

Trixie passed out the papers and then stood up. “I’m going to go outside and get some fresh air. Besides, that way you can discuss this amongst yourselves.”

Diana quickly protested. “Oh, but you don’t have to go outside Trixie!”

“I know that,” answered Trixie. “But, for once I’m trying to do things the right way. I don’t want all of you to feel like you have to do something for me. I want you to do it because you want to do it.”

Trixie stood in the doorway. “Call me in when you’re ready.”

And with those final words, she walked out of the clubhouse.

Stunned silence.

“Was that our sister?” Brian asked Mart.

“Yes, I do believe that was,” he answered back.

Honey looking at the departing Trixie and then back at the group, said. “Um, if you all don’t mind, I’m going to go with Trix. I saw the information earlier.” And before anyone could question her, Honey was out the door also.

After the initial shock wore off, the group began to examine the information Trixie had gathered for them. The printouts provided a glimpse of life foreign to all but Jim and Dan.

The Saddle Up program, besides riding, was designed to give children an understanding of California’s history and an appreciation for the environment; a factor greatly appreciated by the future educator, Jim. Inner City Slickers on the other hand, presented a far different set of circumstances than the more idyllic Griffith Park program.

While both programs aimed toward ‘inner city’ kids, the Inner City Slickers program was designed to offer more than a short and simple exposure to riding. The program was also designed to offer a new point of view for kids that didn’t quite define average. Hopefully, that outlook would break through long held barriers and offer hope to those who had little.

“Say, look at this,” said Mart. “The kids at this Saddle Up program even have to keep journals.”

“Let me see that Mart, would you?” asked Jim. “Hmm, there sure is a lot more going on than I thought.”

“If you think that’s interesting, you should read some of the letters from the Inner City program.” said Diana. “Listen to this:

‘Before going to the City Slickers Ranch, I was very closed-minded. I thought that it would be nothing but a boring weekend. The only reason I even went up there was to joke around with my friends and to get out of the house. When I first got up there and looked around I wasn’t aware that I was going to have as much fun as I did through out the weekend. The whole environment up there was a good positive one, and all the people up there were hella cool. We did a grip of stuff up there including: riding horses, roping cattle, tag, herding cows, racing on the horses (which I won by the way) and a number of other things. Out of everything that we had done up there I would have to say that my 2 favorite things were riding the horses and the mechanical bull. I learned about teamwork and what can be accomplished by doing things with others instead of trying to do things by yourself. A good display of this was when we had to team up and try and rope live cattle. If I didn’t have a team mate to help me out I would not have been able to rope the cows as fast as I did (5 seconds) and it would have took a long time. So over all I had a really enjoyable weekend even though I had the option to either go to the ranch or to the Queen Mary and I have no regrets on my choice.’*

“This is all very interesting, but all we have are a few horses,” said the ever logical Brian. “We wouldn’t be able to offer anything but riding. How is that going to make a difference in some kids life?”

Dan looked intently at Brian for a moment before responding. “I think you’re missing the point. These letters aren’t about riding horses or roping cattle. What the letters are telling us is that someone was interested in these kids, maybe for the first time in their life. You have no idea what that feels like.” The expression in his black eyes and on his face was serious.

Diana reached out to clasp Dan’s hand. “You’re not just talking about those kids in California, are you? You’re talking about yourself.”

“Yeah- I am. It hit me while we were reading these letters, any one of those kids could be me. Listen to this one:

‘Once I was there I couldn’t even remember my city life. I think it is so awesome to know that I do have a place to go when I need to get away and find my inner self. The encouragement was awesome there and some people have never seen that before or very little of it. Most of us that attended this time have had a hard time growing up and to see what we all could accomplish there blew my mind.’*

“Don’t you see, even just something as simple as riding horses is more than just the experience, it’s a step towards normal.”

“Exactly!” agreed Jim. “Look at some of these kids. Some of them are coming from Juvenile Hall and getting the chance to be normal for the first time in their life.”

“Not to put a damper on things, but don’t you think that having kids from Juvy might be asking for more trouble than we’re capable of handling?” asked Mart.

“Well, from what I’m reading here,” Dan pointed at one of the sheets, “the Juvy program is just one of the options at Slickers. Look at how it’s worded, ‘we can come to you.’ That implies that the Juvy program is separate from the regular program.”

“Okay, I’ll accept that,” said Mart. “I guess my biggest question is, how is this all supposed to help Regan when we’re away at college?”

“I think the answer to that is in this printout from the Lexington-Fayette PAL I’ve been looking at,” replied Jim. “Listen to this:

Veteran members help teach new members the basics of stall management, grooming, care, handling, and safety. They are responsible for grooming, tacking up, cooling out, turning out, cleaning their stalls and the barn's aisle, and caring for their tack.

“Gosh, I have to give Trixie credit. It’s obvious she really has thought this through,” said Mart. Although the ‘almost twins’ argued incessantly, they were always each other’s fiercest defender.

“Listen, I don’t know about the rest of you, but I think Trixie has a great idea," said Diana. "I think we can do something like this. What about the rest of you?”

The rest of the Bob-Whites sat silently for some time, thinking their own thoughts. Finally, Brian was the first to speak.

“What I think, is that it’s time for Trixie and Honey to come back in. I think it’s time for the whole club to have a discussion.”

“Speaking as co-president, I agree.” Jim stood up. “I’ll go outside and get them.”

Jim quickly returned with a visibly nervous Trixie and Honey. They took their seats again at the table. This time Jim took charge of the meeting.

“All right- why don’t we begin.” Jim turned to look at Trixie who was sitting nervously chewing her lip. “We’ve had a chance to look at your printouts. Let me be the first to say that I am interested in looking more into this idea. At first, I thought it might be a bit much, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized the truth in what you said earlier. You know- about being involved directly. All of these groups are doing exactly what I want to do some day. And the thought that we could do something similar, well, gosh that would be swell!”

The effect of Jim’s words on Trixie was instantaneous. A huge smile blossomed on her face and her blue eyes radiated happiness.

Jim turned to look at the rest of the group. “Okay, I’ve had my say. Brian, you seemed to have the most concerns. Do you have anything to say to Trixie?”

Brian sat thoughtfully for a moment, obviously trying to choose the right words. “I think that what these groups are doing is admirable,” he said slowly. “My only concern is that in an initial rush of enthusiasm, we don’t bite off more than we can handle. The decision we make today will have a long lasting effect, not just on ourselves, but on others as well.”

Brian watched to see what effect his words would have on his headstrong and often impulsive sister. Trixie merely nodded her head in agreement.

“I couldn’t agree with you more Brian. Now you know why I went outside. I really am trying to do the right thing. And to do that, I need for you,” Trixie looked at all the Bob-Whites, “all of you to be honest. Don’t let me force you into a decision. For a project this big, and long-lasting, it needs to be something we agree on - unanimously. If even one of us is unsure, then I don’t think it would be fair to the group. Agreed?”

The rest of the Bob-Whites stared at Trixie in shocked amazement for a moment, and then everyone chorused: Agreed.

“All right, now that we have that settled, maybe you’ll feel better Brian, if I tell you the same thing I told Regan. Even though the Saddle Up program takes place every Saturday, there’s nothing to say that we have to do the same thing. We could try once a month to see how things work out. And speaking of Regan, there is one more thing I need to mention. Regan is, as I told Honey, cautiously non-committal. His biggest concern is Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler. After all,” Trixie added with a smirk, “the horses do belong to Mr. Wheeler.”

“And,” added Honey softly, “my mother will be concerned about all the strangers. There’s no guarantee that mother and father will agree to this. That’s why Trixie and I decided that if the rest of you are willing, we would approach father with a business plan. A business plan with detailed information.”

“The good news,” said Trixie, “is that Regan has offered to go along with us when, or should I say, if we make that presentation.”

“Which brings us back to this discussion,” said Jim. “Is there anyone else who has any concerns that should be addressed before we take a vote?”

“Well, actually I do have one little question.” Mart looked a little plaintive. “We’ve heard about all these groups, what they’re doing, and the kids they’re helping. But what group of kids are we going to help?”

“To be honest Mart, I didn’t have anyone specifically in mind.” Trixie looked him directly in the eye, “I didn’t want to get my hopes up to high, only to have my idea shot down.”

Mart had the grace to look abashed. “Aw Trix, you know we meant well when we teased you. And you have to admit, we don’t do that anymore.”

Trixie relented. “You’re right Mart, you don’t. But you can understand why I was a little hesitant.”

Trixie turned to address the full group again. “Anyway, Honey told me that we need more concrete information for Mr. Wheeler. I figure that our business plan could include several different groups to choose from as well as the information we might be able to obtain from these existing groups. I guess what it really boils down to now, is a vote.”

“Can we have a motion?” asked Jim.

“I motion that we prepare the business plan for Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler.” said Dan immediately.

“I second the motion,” said Mart, winning an approving smile from Trixie.

“All those in favor?”

“Aye!”

“All those against?”

Silence.

Jim pounded the imaginary gavel. “We have a unanimous decision in favor of preparing the business plan for Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler! Madame Co-President, do you have anything you would like to say?”

“Yes. First of all- thank you! Second, and I know you’re going to love this,” Trixie added apologetically, “we really do need to begin gathering the information we’ll need for the presentation. I think if we divide up the different groups, the work load won’t be so heavy. We’ll need to know expenses, logistics, and probably a bunch of things I haven’t even thought of. Also, when should we meet again to begin putting the business plan together?”

“Tell you what,” said Brian. “Since Jim and I are both taking Business Management, why don’t we ask Mr. Adriano for some ideas about what to ask. We could put together a questionnaire and then distribute it once we’re done.”

“Okay!” Trixie’s normal exuberance, held at bay during the meeting, was now returning to normal levels. “And when should we meet again?”

“At the risk of sounding pessimistic, I’d say no sooner than two weeks.” Jim looked for confirmation from Brian. “That will leave us enough time to create and distribute the questionnaire, and for us to get information back from the west coast.”

Brian nodded his agreement. “I agree that two weeks sounds good for right now, unless something comes up. In that case, we can always reschedule.”

“Then the final thing we need to do is sign up for what group we want to research,” Trixie placed the printouts on the table. “Why don’t we put our name on the group we want to research. And, I believe this meeting can be adjourned.!”

Honey raced around the table to give Trixie a big hug. “See,” she whispered in Trixie’s ear. “I told you you’d do fine.”