Anne Wakefield Leck

---

She's won amazing praises for the quality of this lamb and it's important to her to keep her lamb cuts competitive with local grocery stores and meat shops. She's been selling lamb from her farm (Sheepy Hollow) at local farmers' markets since 2003

In addition to owning and operating Sheepy Hollow, Anne has a background in the horse world... though retired now, her story is interesting.

There was little choice. Anne was born into a horse family. She was about two years old when her parents gave her a pony, named Starlight. It was a black and white pinto. By the age of ten, Anne was "riding to the hounds" and shortly thereafter she was going over fences. Before she was fifteen, she earned her colors from the Long Lake Hounds and she had ridden hunters at ever major horse show in North America, piling up trophies from every corner of the country.

It was at those horse shows (Madison Square Garden, Devon and Toronto) that Anne would see the huge Park Coaches driven to four-in-hands. She was particularly fascinated by the high steppers. Standing by the rail, watching the driving classes, a glimmering of an idea began. By 1980, Anne owned her own Park Coach(manufactured in 1882 by the famous Brewster & Company), a set of Freedman four-in-hand harness, and a four of chestnut Hackney Horses. Within two months of purchasing her four, teaching herself to drive by examining how-to-do-it manuals, she drove her four and coach at the prestigious Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto. It was a Cinderella dream come true. Shortly after, she flew to England to study under the world's most renown woman whip, Cynthia Haydon.

Though now retired from active driving, Anne has, in the past, driven at all the continent's major driving shows and pleasure driving marathons. The former breeding operation at her farm has helped to repopulate the once dwindling number of Hackney Horses. She also developed a bay cross-bred driving horse that she and her husband drove as often as they did their Hackneys. Anne had become recognized as one of the nation's most accomplished whips and a leading authority on driving-safety and harnessing. She has led dozens of seminars and clinics on the subjects. Anne recently retired from active judging. In the past she was certified by the American Driving Society as a pleasure driving judge and judged at pleasure shows from one end of the country to the other. She has judged pleasure driving classes at some of the most prestigious shows in America -- Walnut Hill, Devon, and the National Horse Show.

Anne served for over four years as a Director of the American Driving Society and spent three years on its Executive Committee. She also spent eight years as a Director of the Carriage Association of America and continues now as an Honorary Director.  She was on the Advisory Committee to the Carriage Collection at the Museums at Stony Brook, now known as the The Long Island Museum,on Long Island, NY. She was a member of the Advisory Committee of the 1993 World Pairs Driving Championships that were held in Gladstone, New Jersey. She is a former Director of the Minnesota Whips and Wheels, a local driving organization. She is a former President of the World Coaching Club, an organization she helped found in 1982. And finally, Anne is a former member of The Board of Governors of the United States Pony Clubs.

Her children are grown now and living in their own homes while Anne and her husband live in a home on her farm, about 25 miles west of Minneapolis. In the wider community she's well known for her contributions to charitable and civic organizations. She has served on the boards of several community charitable and cultural institutions. Off the farm, her favorite activities are enjoying the wonderful Tyrone Guthrie Theatre, in Minneapolis, and the concerts of the Minnesota Orchestra. She also remains very loyal to the Ethel Walker School and carries wonderful memories with her about her time there. It might not be difficult to guess that this boarding school has a wonderful horse program and it is why Anne and her family chose it for Anne's high school years.

Her family is still deeply involved in horses. Her late father, Lyman Wakefield, rode nearly every day and rode to the hounds at most every meet through his 85th year. Anne's younger sister, Louise still competes in open jumping and hunt shows around the country and in Europe. Anne's husband, Charles, before retiring from the sport, also drove four and is a former member of the Coaching Club of New York City. He also earned his colors from the Long Lake Hounds.

Anne was raised in Minnesota as a child  She lived for a very short time in California and in Sweden as a young mother, but found her way back to the state she loves so dearly. Here, at Sheepy Hollow, she supervises the management of a flock of over 150 sheep and lambs. This program produces large amounts of both wool and meat. In addition to graduating from The Ethel Walker School, in Simsbury Connecticut, she studied chemistry both at the University of Minnesota and at Stanford University. Anne also holds an Associate Degree in Applied Sciences from the College of Saint Catherine in St. Paul, Minnesota.  She is a licensed Physical Therapy Assistant who specializes in geriatric physical therapy. 

Summary Résumé
Pleasure Driving Judge and Coaching Judge
Certified by the American Driving Society as a Pleasure Driving Judge and Coaching Judge
Past Director of the American Driving Society
Former Member of the Executive Committee of the American Driving Society
Past Director of the Carriage Association of America
Former Honorary Director of the Carriage Association of America
Former President and a founder of the World Coaching Club
Former Director of the United States Pony Club
Member of the American Tandem Society
Member of the American Horse Shows Association

Judged at many pleasure driving competitions, including:
   The National Horse Show
   The Devon Horse Show
   Walnut Hill Farm Driving Competition
   Los Angeles State Fair
      The Canadian Carriage Classic
   Michigan State Fair Horse Show
    Minnesota Morgan Horse Show

Competed at many driving shows, including:
   The National Horse Show
   The Devon Horse Show
   Royal Agricultural Winter Fair Horse Show (Toronto)
   Walnut Hill Farm Driving Competition
   The Canadian Carriage Classic
   Villa Louis Carriage Driving Competition*
   The Barrington (IL) Horse Show

*Villa Louis is our favorite driving show and, though we don't compete any ore, we

continue to support this magnificent show with our financial contributions.