Sami Bolton had several stories to tell when we met at the Tryon Co-Op Coffeehouse. One story became two and two morphed into three. But in the end there was one overriding concern that Sami is passionate about and she is unwavering in her desire to get that story told. An interesting turn of events changed her life.
 
Sami is trying her best to bring back an extinct species of horse…and there’s a good possibility this is going to happen. Here’s how it all started.

​Several years back Sami’s husband, Barry Shreve, who had grown up around sailboats, convinced Sami to give boating a try. They bought a small sailboat and trailered it around to various lakes. That started this set of events that led to her life-change.

I could continue to relate all of the tales I heard from Sami about living on a boat and the remarkable adventures they had and that would make for volumes of interesting reading material. She even started a Facebook group called “Cooking on a Boat” that is still active today with nearly 10,000 followers. But I’m going to leave that for a future post and move on to the amazing real-world Jurassic Park part of this story.

​They were on their latest boat, Déjà Vu Too, anchored out of Marsh Island Harbor, the biggest of the islands of the Abaco Island chain of the Bahamas when their fates took a turn. Like everyone in the harbor, they were tuned into channel 68 on their boat’s radio to listen to a report of all the day’s happenings around the island. The word “horses” caused Sami’s ears to perk up like our horse would do when you unwrapped a peppermint. 

​Over the radio came the announcement, “Mimi says that Buck a Book is going to be open this morning and she could really use some volunteers to help the wild horses of Abaco.” Sami and Barry weren’t sure what Buck a Book was or what the wild horses of Abaco were…but they had the couple hooked after hearing the word, “horses.”

It ends up that Buck a Book is a used bookstore on the island and Mimi is Milanne Rehor who since 1992 has been desperately and untiringly trying to save the very last of a distinct horse breed now called the Abaco Island Horse. These horses are descendants of the horses that Christopher Columbus brought to the New World at the end of the 15th Century. The very distinctive horse, small in size and often with a splash of white on their faces (caused by a special gene), eventually made it to the Abaco Islands to serve as logging animals but were abandoned when tractors made them “too much trouble.” The horses managed to eek out survival on their own until encroaching civilization changed everything. All but three were slaughtered in the early 1960s. By the mid 1990s, Mimi, with mostly volunteer help, had brought the herd back to 35. But a hurricane pushed the horses out of their forest habitat into an unprotected area filled with man-made and natural hazards that would be their demise. 

When Sami and Barry first heard about this amazing story, the last of the Abaco Island Horses were down to just three old mares and one stallion. The clock was ticking and time was running out to somehow or other save this breed from extinction. But the horses were advancing in years and the inability to corral or halter any of these animals made checking on their physical condition impossible or at least very difficult. Sami was able to get a glimpse of Hadar, the last stallion, before he vanished like a ghost never to be seen again. 
 
Two more mares died and now the last chance for preserving this species relied on getting viable eggs from Nunki, the very last mare and that would take a team, hard work, money, and some good luck. This one part of the story is amazing in itself and one day I hope Sami or Mimi will write a book about all that went into this heroic attempt to save the Abaco Island Horse. 

​You might be asking about now, what good is viable tissue from a mare if there’s no stallion left? Enter Dr. Gus Cothran, a professor at Texas A & M University and a lead scientist with the World Equine Genome Project. It was Dr. Cothran who, based on DNA hair samples, had originally traced the Abaco Island Horse back to the original Iberian horses. He confirmed that what Mimi and the world had was very rare and very important. Dr. Cothran has identified a few stallions that most resemble the genetic make-up of the Abaco Island Horse. One of those stallions, Wayward Wind, lives in North Carolina and the owners have already agreed to give a straw of semen for this rescue attempt.
 

It was just about a month ago when I published a story about Joseph Letterio, an amazing person who has strengths we can only imagine. Joseph's first book had just been published. You can read that original post by clicking here.

Tonight Joseph had the first local book signing and it was my pleasure to be there. And of course, I got my personal copy signed.

A crowd was on hand at the Copper Penny Grill in Forest City and Joseph was beaming with pride as he signed cherished copies.

Joseph's Musings of a Wannabe Renaissance Man is available through Amazon.

​The Saluda Historic Depot is a must stop for rail fans and anyone who loves history. In three short years the Saluda Historic Depot & Museum has made a name for itself with train and history buffs and others who enjoy learning about the past. They are keeping Saluda railroad history on the map.
 
Any train enthusiast worth his or her weight in coal dust can tell you that the “Saluda Grade” is historic as the steepest mainline railway grade in the United States. The grade gains 606 feet in less than three miles. That might not be impressive when driving up nearby I-26 in your car, but for a train pulling passengers and/or freight weighing hundred of tons – it’s treacherous going up ordownhill. So treacherous that in 2001 Norfolk-Southern decided enough’s enough.

​The silencing of the whistle, which was first blown in 1878, didn’t mean the silencing of the history of this famous stretch of railway. 

Naturally, the museum is located inside the original Saluda Depot built in 1903. It sat adjacent to the tracks until 1984 when it was moved to its current location on Main Street. The building served off and on as retail space for years and in 2015 the building came up for sale. A group of citizens decided they needed to seize the opportunity to forever protect the history of the depot and the train life that made up such an important part of Saluda’s history.

Judy Ward is the chair of the eight member volunteer board that has been crucial in protecting and developing the Historic Depot. Judy was on hand the day I visited and provided me with volumes of information that I can only touch on here. (Check the “More to Know” section at the end of this story for web links.) The day I visited the museum was experiencing a non-stop flow of visitors which kept volunteers Mike Reeves and Evan Lazer busy answering questions and offering friendly help. Word is getting out about this foothills’ gem. The museum had over 5,000 visitors last year from around the U.S. and from several foreign countries including a woman from Sydney, Australia who was signing the guest register while I was visiting. 
 
The Saluda Historic Depot & Museum depends on donations, grants, and hard work to keep it open.  Volunteers staff the museum including next-door neighbor Mark Ray who runs a shop. He steps in on Tuesday and Wednesday helping to extend the open days. It is amazing how quickly this piece of history has transformed itself into a must-see stop for visitors and locals alike. It’s located right in the heart of downtown Saluda, a town that has itself transformed into a destination.

Andrea Whiteside doesn’t quite fit the mold of what you might expect in an entrepreneur. After visiting for an hour I knew I was wrong about that.
 
Andrea is no stranger to hard work and that’s what she’s faced since opening Andrea’s Plus Size Clothing in downtown Spindale. Andrea knew this is what she wanted to do even though in her heart she knew it would be an uphill march. Anyone opening a store these days faces risks. But at age 55 Andrea was ready to face those risks head on. She’s not a quitter and she hasn’t looked back. The empty shell of a store needed a lot of work to get opened. The owner was very helpful in giving her a break on the rent and letting her move in without a lease for the first six months. He also provided a brand-new heating/air conditioning unit, something definitely needed but missing.

​She rolled up her sleeves and her husband, Roy, stepped in as both Andrea’s head cheerleader and also her chief handyman. They scrubbed, they built, and they painted. They scavenged everywhere to find all the things a store would need from display units and shelves and even a cash register. Roy didn’t stop there. He also provided Andrea with his credit card and told her to buy what she needed to get the store stocked. That’s true dedication and a display of love to help his wife achieve her dream of owning her own place and being her own boss. He did point out that the card came with a credit limit!

A three-legged dog was the first thing I noticed as Dana Mayer walked over to meet me for this story. It was instantly obvious that this dog was lucky to have someone like Dana in her life. 
 
Baylon, the dog, was an instant hit with customers at Openroad Coffee Roastery as we sat outside to talk. Baylon rotated between giving dog kisses and slurping her puppachino provided by the coffeehouse. Baylon’s story is heartbreaking and you can read all the details on the Paws, Prayers & Promises blog on their website linked below. But just so you know, a mail carrier in Landrum spotted this dog clinging to life with a gunshot wound to the leg. The mail carrier was able to get word to Dana Mayer and Dana and Baylon have been inseparable ever since.

Dana took over the Po’ Kitties program for the Foothills Shelter. If you’re unfamiliar with the program it is a local success story but Dana points out that there is still so much work to do. During the past twelve years over 5,800 cats have been saved from euthanasia by the Po’ Kitties program which helps capture and then provides for spay/neuter service by a local veterinarian. The problem of feral cats breeding and breeding is one of Dana’s biggest challenges. She’s says, “There’s no excuse with so many free spay/neuter programs around including the one offered by Paws, Prayers & Promises. It just takes a call to start the process.” Landrum Veterinarian Hospital has been very generous to the organization in providing this service, which includes the surgery as well as a rabies shot for very low cost to Dana’s rescue group. The service is free to area residents when they ask for help from a sponsoring organization like Paws, Prayers & Promises. 

Paws, Prayers & Promises has no paid staff and that includes Dana as director. The organization depends on volunteers and donations to help these animals in need. They have no shelter and rely on foster families to help house the dogs and cats until they get adopted. Dana skillfully uses the organization’s Facebook page and other web animal adoption sites to help get animals placed. She’s also very thankful to Kelly Vinesett (on the right with Gabe) and Yvonne Bebber of P3 Consignment Shop in downtown Landrum as devoted supporters of animals in need. All funds raised by P3 Consignment Shop go to animal rescue organizations including Paws, Prayers & Promises. But they go a step beyond by providing storefront living quarters for two or three kittens ready for adoption. (Look for a future story about P3.)
 
Kelly Vinesett says of Dana, “She is the most generous, hardworking, dedicated woman we have ever met. It is an honor to stand beside her and help her in every way we can.”

​Dana’s future plans include doing even more if that’s possible. She already shares a home with four dogs and several cats including one that is blind. Dana will often keep the hardest-to-place animals. “They all need our help and love and I want to be there for them.”