Amarillo, Texas - Nearly $50,000 was raised last week by the American Quarter Horse Foundation (AQHF) during the annual MBNA America Quarter Horse Racing Challenge Championships.

On Saturday afternoon, October 20, AQHF held its annual Racing Scholarship Auction. During the hour-long event, dozens of AQHA Members raised their hands to bid on items donated for the auction. The live auction brought in $32,700 of the total amount raised.

Throughout the week in Los Alamitos, California, racing Members also had the opportunity to bid on items in a silent auction. There were some 50 silent auction items, which raised $6,300 for the Foundation.

In addition to the two auctions, Challenge Championships and racing conference participants could buy plastic racing American Quarter Horses for $20 a piece and race their starters in a special toy horse futurity. AQHA President J.D. Blondin's sprinter survived two-days worth of trials, eliminating all competitors and finishing first in the toy horse futurity. Blondin was awarded a John Deere GatorÒ donated by Bob and Carmen Grimes of Tucson, Arizona. After the championship event, Blondin donated the Gator, valued at nearly $7,000, back to the Foundation for its auction that will be held during the AQHA Convention March 1-5 in Dallas, Texas. In all, 180 plastic horses were sold to raise funds for scholarships and research.

"Our whole deal here is to have fun while raising money," said Patti Colbert, Senior Director of Foundation Development for AQHF. "We have so many generous Members who want to see their 'America's Horse' preserved, whether through supporting education, equine research or scholarships. I was glad that we were able to pull an event together that also was exciting for them."

Johan Graham, the 2000 California State Auctioneer of the Year, donated her time to serve as auctioneer on Saturday afternoon. Graham, is the first female to earn the California title and has worked some 1,500 auctions in her short career.

For more information on the American Quarter Horse Foundation, including making a donation, visit www.aqha.com or call 1-888-209-8322.