KIRKWOOD, Pa.--James C (Jim) Paxson suffered a devastating fire that destroyed his barn and everything in it on Tuesday, March 31.

Paxson is Master of Foxhounds of River Hills Foxhounds, and his Funnel Lake Farm is the base for hunt horses and foxhounds.

Luckily, no horses or foxhounds were lost in the fire, and the fire didn't spread to the nearby kennels of his River Hills Foxhounds or to his house.

But Paxson lost all of the horses' and hound's feed, multiple balesof hay, blankets, sheets, tack, vehicles and the barn, which was burned to the ground.

Paxson has helped many people over the years, and now he needs help.

Some people have already given his blankets for his horses, as all were lost in the fire and weather turned chilly again.

But really big ticket items like a new barn and tractors will take huge donations.

A methid of donating to Paxson in a way that will be tax deductible is being investigated, and if a way is found, it will be published in The Horse.

"My heart is breaking," said Paxson. "I'm having trouble sleeping. I'm having trouble with the insurance company. Hopefully, the good Lord will take care of us.

"I ran out, just in my long johns, but the barn was already engulfed.

 

"I HAD just picked up 60 blankets, and they're all gone,"he said. "I had just taken the sheets off the horses because it was warm, and I had just dumped then on the ground in the barn. They're all gone. Then it got cold again, but some people brought sheets and blankets. Some were even new.

"I had 16 big bales of hay and a lot of small bales. They're all gone. All the feed is gone. I went out and got some feed, and some people brought feed. 

"I got 10 saddles and 15 bridles out, but five or six saddles are gone.  I got the car and the van out, but I couldn't move the bus or the big four wheel tractor. I tried to move it,  but when I put my hand  on the door it was so hot that I burned my hand."

Paxson and his whippers-in have served as outriders at many local steeplechase meets for 36 years, and, amazingly, Paxson says they will continue the tradition without missing a step.

"We'll be at Brandywine on Sunday, and then at Mount Harmon and Radnor and then at all the others," said Paxson. "I have to do something to keep myself sane."

Paxson's horses and the hunt horses live out in the spacious fields, but he will take the horses to a neighboring barn to wash them and clean them up for the hunt meets, as all his facilities are gone.