From the Mayor

from theMAYOR Frenchie and Horseshoe Fever

BY MAYOR KENT GUINN

One of the nice aspects of being mayor of such a fine city is meeting many great people who are so dedicated to making this a better place.

One of those people is Virginia C. Bisiaux, who prefers to be referenced by her nickname ‘Frenchie.’ She has resided in Ocala for 22 years and has her hand in many charitable and educational projects. Her latest endeavor involves some pretty good timing, with Horse Fever taking Ocala by storm once again. Frenchie’s project is called “Horseshoe Fever” and fuses art and charity just like the former.

Frenchie is president of the College of Central Florida Equestrian Club and has taken a cue from Horse Fever in raising money for the club. Instead of painting large horse canvases, Frenchie is painting actual horseshoes and selling them, with all proceeds benefitting the club. “I wanted to do a fundraiser and to me it was an absolute no-brainer to do something with horseshoes,” said Frenchie, whose parents were farriers. “I have seen the evolution of Horse Fever and I put two and two together, and thought, ‘Well, if I’m going to do something with horseshoes, why don’t I paint them?” Frenchie is a student at CF after a military career that saw five active combat duty tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and is now retired on disability. She started her quest by purchasing the necessary paint and cleaning supplies to go along with the many horseshoes she has accumulated. The whole process has been a labor of love where the prepping of the shoes takes up the most time. “What took the longest was the cleaning of the shoes,” she said. “It took me three to four months to remove the nails, manure and everything.” A self-described perfectionist, once Frenchie has removed the last grain of dirt, she embarks on painting the horseshoes herself along with many of her friends in the art community. The final products, many of which are commissioned pieces, sell for $25 and as much as $50 with every cent going to the club.

So far, she has bought and cleaned around 200 horseshoes with around 150 having been turned into nice pieces of art. The onset of the pandemic has kept sales of the horseshoes limited to friends, family, co-workers, professors at the college and even myself, but she is hoping soon to bring the wider public into the mix.

She says she had not planned on officially starting the campaign until the college opened up activities. At that point, other members of the club would become more fully involved to broaden the range of “Horseshoe Fever.”

“Some of my friends have asked me for customized work,” Frenchie said. “But when I do the customized work, I’m going to ask for the $50 donation.” So hopefully soon the college will open up its activities and Frenchie will see “Horseshow Fever” reach its full potential.

For now, anyone who is interested in donating to the club by purchasing one of these unique pieces of art may contact Frenchie at 352-216-4273 or via email, ltfrenchie@hotmail.com.

Mayor Kent Guinn