$200,000 raised for Kevin Babington Foundation

OVER $200,000 was raised for the Kevin Babington Foundation at what was one of the most entertaining fundraisers of all time in Wellington, Florida, last Friday evening.

Some 13 of Wellington’s finest horsemen, including Irishmen Paul O’Shea, Ronan McGuigan, John Brennan and Darragh Kerins, dressed in their finest queen attire and put on a show for the huge audience.

Kevin Babington, Margie Engle, Missy Clark and Colm McGuckian acted as the judges through the tears of laughter on a fun-filled night. Each of the ‘queens’ put on a performance, but it was the unrecognisable Sligo show jumper Darragh Kerins or ‘Madonna Kerins’ who wowed with a show-stopping performance to win.

Missy Clark, who runs the foundation, said: “Thank you to the many people who pledged generous donations, Kevin and his family are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of support from the horse community. The cast of queens were magnificent! No one held back and their performances entertained and motivated the huge crowd!”

We also noticed that two of Kevin’s most loved horses, Mark Q and Super Chilled, are back in the ring. His daughter Gwyneth took over the ride of the now 18-year-old Irish-bred Mark Q in January and the pair have been jumping up to 1.30m with great success, and they took part in the Great Charity Challenge in the main arena during week four at WEF.

Ireland’s Jonathan Corrigan has stepped in to ride the lovely 12-year-old Irish Sport Horse Super Chilled. The combination made their FEI debut at Deeridge and are due to compete in the two-star division at the same venue this weekend.

DONATE TO THE KEVIN BABINGTON FOUNDATION