Page 41 - December 2016

Dasha Freda
James McArthur purchased 2002 filly Dasha Freda, shown here winning the 2005 Bayer Legend California Championship Challenge at Los Alamitos, for the Meneeley’s.
Don and Kathy Meneeley, with
son Shawn, in the winner’s circle after Dasha Freda won the 2005 Bayer Legend California Championship Challenge. Don and Kathy asked Shawn if he wanted to go in halves on the filly, he did, and so S-Quarter K, LLC was formed, adding the S- for Shawn.
Kathy and Don Meneely received the 2015 AQHA Dam of Distinction award for their broodmare
Dasha Freda from AQHA President Dr. Glenn Blodgett. Among others, the mare has produced 2015 World Champion/3-time Champion
Heza Dasha Fire and 2015 Champion Ima Fearless Hero.
Artist Ginny Harding’s painting of Dasha Freda when she became an AQHA Dam of Distinction. The mare is shown with newborn Heza Dasha Fire, who later became a World Champion.
‘If you’re marrying me, you’re marrying my horse!’
Again, Kathy responded in the affirmative, and soon, they formed Quarter K, Inc. “Don said that Quarter K meant the ranch was 1/4 Kathy’s,” Kathy laughs “ — so I wouldn’t think I owned it!” They bought their first great broodmare, 2001 filly First Down Dream (First Down Dash–Tinys Effort, Special Effort), in Texas. “She had four sisters who earned a combined $1 million,” Kathy says.
“We basically bought her to run,” Don adds, “but she was obviously extremely well bred so we could market her babies.”
Not long afterward, they also — unexpectedly — bought 2002 filly Dasha
Freda (Mr Jess Perry – Fearless Freda, Dash For Cash). “Donna McArthur had trained the other sisters to First Down Dream, so when we were deciding on a trainer for Dream, we decided we’d ask Donna. We got real close with her and
James while she trained for us, and the next year, I called James and asked him to look at some horses at the sale for me. He took that as ‘Buy me a horse!’ When Donna told me he’d bought Freda for us, I thought she was joking so I called the sale company and asked who’d bought the horse. They told me, ‘Quarter K.’
“It was very lucky that he’d bought her for us,” Kathy stresses, but as Don scrutinized the balance sheet, he thought it might be kind of tough
to make it work, so they asked their older son, Shawn, now 41, if he’d like to go halves on her.
“Shawn is a investment advisor for UBS,” Don says. “He spent all of his time growing up in the gym and didn’t know anything about the horses, but I think he saw it as a way to connect with his mom.” And so S-Quarter K, LLC was formed, adding the S- for Shawn to Kathy and Don’s existing Quarter K name.
“Kathy had told James what she was looking for — she loved that female line,” says longtime friend, neighbor and race-industry portrait artist Ginny Harding. “It was a huge monetary step but they did it and got their return on the money.”
“It was a little karma,” affirms another longtime friend and neighbor, Lisa DeMatties, who assists in running Abigail Kawananakoa’s facility in Kennewick, Washington. “Kathy is a very extraordinary woman. She has devoted a lot of her life to Shawn since he was injured in a diving accident when he was about 16.”
“Shawn could have depended on the government for the rest of his life, but that’s not the kind of people they are,” adds Ginny. “With Don and Kathy’s support, Shawn worked hard, went to college, got an education, and is now married and a successful businessman.”
SPEEDHORSE, December 2016 39
Los Alamitos
Ginny Harding
Los Alamitos