The Rebirth of Renaissance Stables and Reynolds Equestrian Center

Story and Photos by JJ Kaplan

Lisa Reynolds and her daughter, Madison, with their horse Calipso.
Lisa Reynolds and her daughter, Madison, with their horse Calipso.

At its roots, the word “renaissance” means rebirth. Many Zionsville residents have watched from afar the rebirth of the property once known as Forest Manor Arabians. For the past three years, it has been lovingly restored to be a beautiful home and farm yet again, now known as Renaissance Stables. Located on 300 South near Michigan Road in its new role as a vibrant equestrian center, this Zionsville property has rebirthed not one but two dreams: one dream of its current owner, the Leman family, and now, a second for the farm’s newest renter, Reynolds Equestrian Center.

Beginning in the 1980s, Forest Manor was one of the premier Arabian breeding farms in the U.S. One stallion in particular, Bask Knight, put Forest Manor in a world-class category. With about 100 acres and more than 50 horses on the property, it was no small operation. The owner, Cheryl Jenn-Pollard, purchased the estate with the help of her father, Louis Jenn, the founder of the Jenn-Air Corp. For many years, she and her husband ran the internationally known breeding facility with great success. However, in more recent decades, injuries obtained in two separate car accidents severely limited Pollard’s

The restored main home of Mary Leman at Renasissance Stables

ability to keep up with running the enormous operation. In order to raise capital, Pollard eventually began selling parcels of land away from the primary farm, but even this wasn’t enough to maintain the property. It eventually became evident that the property would need to be sold. The family home had also fallen into disrepair, with raccoons living in the attic and floors rotting from underfoot. A major restoration was required of the entire estate. The property lingered on the market for years with no takers until the Leman family stepped forward.

Renaissance Stables impressive history, once known as Forest Manor, home of Bask Knight, a prized Arabian stallion.

Mary Leman, a small-animal veterinarian, and her husband, Jerod Leman, a commodities broker, fell in love with Zionsville back in 2004. They had relocated here after Mary had taken a job at Zionsville Country Veterinary Clinic, working alongside Drs. Rick and Shari Lyons. Once they started a family, Mary stepped away from full-time practice to volunteer for the Humane Society for Boone County and to work as a part-time veterinarian at the Indianapolis low-cost spay and neuter clinic, FACE. Meanwhile, they had been looking to find a property in Zionsville to create a farm life for their children and to have some acreage for their horses.
One day, Mary noticed the Forest Manor property for sale on Craigslist. They felt it would be above their means, but something sparked their interest. The Lemans visited the property, and after much prayer and consideration, began to see their dream take shape.

As Mary explains, “The bones of the house were good, and I could see how it could be a working horse farm again. My husband, a farm boy growing up, had the know-how. He thought he would plant corn and beans like his father someday, so he just had to change his perception of farming to include horses.” Purchasing the property in 2010, they renamed it Renaissance Stables to pay homage to its former resident, Bask Knight. According to Mary, “We wanted to recognize the farm’s rich history but signify that we were moving forward to something new. It was the rebirth of both the property as well as for us as horse farmers.”

The renovations of land and barns were significant and extensive. Abandoned cars were

Owner Mary Leman and Lisa Reynolds of Reynolds Equestrian Center.

removed, multiple junk/debris piles were loaded and carted away, and a dilapidated living trailer needed to be torn down by hand. Miles of rotten fencing were laboriously ripped out post by post and replaced by even more miles of beautiful four-board, wood horse fencing. The main barn needed a complete cleaning of the compacted, cementified bedding that was chiseled out stall by stall. Each stall’s structure needed to have multiple boards replaced and other repairs too numerous to list. Broken windows were removed and replaced by wood horse shutters. Roofs were repaired, gutters were added, and the pastures were groomed and then stripped by hand (by chainsaw on occasion) of the thick poison ivy choking the life out of the beautiful trees. The list of repairs and renovations goes on and on.

Not completely on their own, the Lemans insist that good friends, such as the Thompson and Swan families, their own family members, and even neighbors helped at every turn. As for the family home, the Lemans hired a contractor for what turned out to be “a complete gut job.”

In July of 2011, the Lemans officially opened Renaissance Stables for horse boarding. The property now offers a newly renovated indoor riding arena, a large outdoor grass arena, 19 horse safe stalls, a stately 50-foot round training barn and seven beautiful turnout paddocks with 16 acres of green pasture. Mary explains her vision, “God had blessed us with this beautiful land, and we had always wanted to share it. We hoped it would be a warm, family-friendly barn and environment. When I was young, some of my best memories were created at our neighborhood barn, and I always hoped young riders could find that same connection with horses and each other here at Renaissance.” However, the boarding business on its own was fairly slow, and the barn remained quiet. Mary adds, “We had desperately wanted a full lessons program but were unsure of how to make that happen on our own.” The Lemans had almost given up on their dream, when Lisa Reynolds approached them late in the summer of 2013. Enter the rebirth of another dream: the expansion of Reynolds’ business, Reynolds Equestrian Center.

Lisa Kerns fell in love and married Darrin Reynolds, a man who loved animals, but who was deathly allergic to horses. Lisa Reynolds had always enjoyed riding and working with horses, so he took allergy medications whenever they rode together on vacations.

Reynolds’ desire to work with horses began by default after she became a mom. Her daughter, Madison, was smitten by horses from the time she could talk. Madison was obsessed with horses, horse books, horse movies, horses in their pastures, horses in any context. She couldn’t get enough of horses. Period. Madison began riding at age 5, and Reynolds began to see a circle of her daughter’s friends who also loved riding. Reynolds wanted to maintain this positive circle of peers and began to coach these novice riders and support them as a group.

Reynolds had been a Young Life Outreach leader early in her career, taking kids on international mission trips. She has always had a passion for working with children and sharing her faith. Working with the young riders at the barn was a natural extension of Reynolds’ talents and gifts. She began to help train riders for 4-H competitions and circuit horse shows.

Soon people were coming to Reynolds for training. Her clients were extremely pleased with her service and when circumstances changed and she needed to move her center, many of her clients followed her to a new barn.

In 2013, Reynolds was looking to relocate her training center from Carmel. Renaissance Stables offered a perfect place to build her business. She brought in 10 horses to begin her lesson program, designed for children and “children at heart.” The center offers boarding, lessons and training.

Reynolds enlists the help of trainers to help her with various disciplines of riding: Amy Sandhu, formerly a member of the University of Kentucky equestrian team, works with hunter/jumpers; Terri Luley coaches dressage; and Kaitlyn Bankert teaches western and contesting. As Reynolds explains, “I love giving my students a breath and breadth of riding disciplines.” She continues, “I love the sense of community, training kids and offering an activity for the whole family.” She plans to add moms riding groups, birthday parties, corporate outings, Girl Scout outings and summer camp, to name a few.

Today, Renaissance Stables and Reynolds Equestrian Center together have realized dreams neither could have accomplished alone. The center is blossoming into a thriving, local training facility filled with children and families. Located at 10655 E. 300 S., this magical piece of Zionsville real estate will be helping many horse lovers find their own dreams coming true when they have the chance to visit and connect with its majestic equine residents.

For more information about Reynolds Equestrian Center and current programs, go to www.reynoldsequestrian.com or call Reynolds directly at 317-644-9191.

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