“Kentucky Derby” comes to Imperial Manor

On Friday, May 3, Imperial Manor/Parkview Heights had their own version of the Kentucky Derby races. The residents had “money” that they could use with the bookmaker. Each horse was given a name by their “owner,” jockeys were chosen to ride the horses, horse information was handed out to the residents and read to them including what the jockeys record was along with the owner’s information. The horses and their jockeys rolled off for their placing at the starting line, then they were off! The races were run twice, once for the residents of the Manor and the other race for the residents of Heights.
The residents had a very close race to watch on the Manor side with a less than a nose to determine the winner. Blue Bayou of Dittler Farms (Bobbie Dittler, owner) with Leatha Snyder as the jockey ran a very good race and took 1st place. The horse was draped with roses and the owner was given the trophy of success to share with their jockey. Coming in 2nd place on the Manor side was The Black owned by Karen Beveridge, who was also the jockey of the horse. And in third place was Secretariat 2, owned and ridden by Chris Greeley.
When the horses lined up in their respective places for the races at Heights, the horses and jockeys were just as excited to run a second time that day. The race wasn’t as close this time around with Blue Bayou taking a commanding lead to win. The second and third place horses were much closer to the finish line. Coming in second place was Chris Greeley and her horse, Secretariat 2. Ending up in the third place spot was a newcomer jockey Laura Co riding the horse Down and Derby whose owner was Gail Vogt. Both horses and jockeys were tired and the owners were happy with how they all placed during the races.
Other horses and their owners included Whinny the Poo owned/jockeyed by Roxane Miller and Red-Hot Filly Pepper with owner/jockey Katelyn Courter. While these ladies didn’t place in the top three, next year is looking to be a better race, as they know what they need to work on.
There will be more fun upcoming throughout the month of May for the residents and staff of Imperial Manor/Parkview Heights. On the 18th of May, there will be a BBQ for staff, residents and their family members. There will be outdoor games on-going during the BBQ, which leads into the week of National Backyard Games from May 20 to 24. On May 24, there will be a big scavenger hunt for residents. They’ll be out with the bike finding different items throughout the community. Any business interested in participating in the scavenger hunt on May 24 can reach out to Tammy Freeman, Activities Director at 308-414-6482 or email her at tammy.freeman@impmanor.org.
IMPV is also looking for volunteers to help out throughout the summer, if you’re interested, please contact Tammy Freeman.