On a warm evening in Wellington, an eclectic crowd gathered at Idlewild Furnishings for a highly anticipated event, the CANA Foundation’s second annual “Don’t be Idle… Get Wild!” charity celebration on Feb. 24.
The evening was hosted in honor, reverence and support for the value, importance and connection between America’s wild horses, native communities and public rangelands.
Guests mixed and mingled with the hosts for the evening: Steve Israel, a 16-year veteran of the U.S. House of Representatives, and renowned actor and activist Moses Brings Plenty. Both work with CANA Foundation and represent the movement to #rewildOurWorld. There are currently more than 50,000 wild horses being held in Bureau of Land Management holding facilities throughout the country.
The CANA Foundation works to rewild these horses on native lands. The goal for the evening was to bring a diverse group of people together to understand the importance of freeing wild horses.
“I was incredibly impressed by the size and energy of the crowd. My sense was that people came with many different political viewpoints but shared common ground on how senseless it is for the federal government to round up and keep tens of thousands of horses in captivity,” said Israel, current CNN personality and CANA Foundation special advisor. “Standing next to Mo, and fighting to rescue those horses and rewild them on native lands was a great honor. Now the next step will be to raise the funds to adopt the horses and transport them to native lands.”
The evening’s rewilding experience began with a viewing of the foundation’s cinematic-quality video that held interviews of people from different tribal affiliations explaining the spiritual and emotional importance of the horse to them and how America’s wild horse roundups are affecting their nations as a whole.
The PSA then transitioned to the world debut of the foundation’s inspirational and visually stunning new music video, “Run Free (Tonight)” by Will Strongheart and Jamie LeRose. Finally, the experience turned truly wild with a Native American dance exhibition by Ravenswing Productions.
Guests enjoyed an evening outside the confines of traditional charity benefits. Held at Idlewild Furnishings, fine purveyors of reclaimed and repurposed Indonesian wood, the ambiance held a natural, eco-chic vibe with plush daybeds, lounge chairs and open fire pits. Farm to table cocktails and fare were provided by the Wellington Hospitality Group and guests had the chance to sip on Wölffer Estate Vineyard’s new release of its Finca Wölffer Rosé.
Unique silent auction items were on display during the evening including biodynamic Zenbunni chocolate, CWD equestrian tack, Naturally Considerate skincare products, and a wide variety of native jewelry and accessories. The teak walls of the venue were draped in wild horse photography by the award-winning Carol Walker, as well as one-of-a-kind artwork by renowned contemporary indigenous artist Gregg Deal. All sales for the evening went to support the rewilding initiatives at CANA Foundation.
CANA initiatives work toward long-term, sustainable solutions that prevent further land degradation, protect and preserve wild horse populations, and encourage a beneficial, thriving ecosystem for today and tomorrow. For more info., visit www.canafoundation.org.
ABOVE: (Front row) Patrick Brooks, Will Strongheart, and Moses Brings Plenty; (middle row) Emelie Jeffries, Alyssa Mosley, Judy Fuson and Sara-Ann Brings Plenty; and (back row) Manda Kalimian and Danielle DeVincentis.
