A 15-year-old Sumter County, Fla., rider died after a horse she was riding in an equitation class tripped between fences and suffered a rotational fall at the Fox Lea Farm horse show in Venice, Fla., over the weekend.
Hannah Serfass was pronounced dead at Sarasota Memorial Hospital. The horse, Quaxx 2, who was between fences at the time of the accident, was uninjured. Sarasota County sheriff’s deputies stated that the horse tripped after the sixth fence. His rider fell off but the gelding continued to fall and landed on Hannah.
Hannah Serfass enjoyed a victory last year in her debut at the Pennsylvania National Horse Show. (Andrew Ryback Photography)
Commenting on the incident, the U.S. Equestrian Federation issued a statement saying it “takes every accident very seriously and will be reviewing the accident thoroughly to learn what we can do to minimize risk and increase safety in equestrian sport.”
A service for Hannah will be held May 8 at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Fla., where she often competed. it is set for noon in the Expo One building, preceded by visitation from 10 a.m.-noon. A luncheon and celebration of Hannah’s llfe will run from 1:30-3 p.m., followed by departure to the cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests blue ribbons with a special message on the back to present to Hannah. Some will be provided at the service.
Hannah is survived by her parents, David Duane and Janine Joy Serfass of Webster, Fla.; her brother: David Benjamin Serfass; her sister: Destinie Carolyn and Joshua Velasquez of Ocala, Fla,; grandparents: Charlotte Serfass of Wadsworth, Ohio and Ronald and Darlene Baksa of Palm Harbor, Florida.
WEC is putting together a fund in Hannah’s memory that will go to help junior riders. A GoFundMe in Hannah’s memory also has been set up at https://www.gofundme.com/f/317mo702ko.
Hannah took up riding after she competed in gymnastics until she was in the fourth grade. Her family had a horse, so she decided to try that sport. She trained with Robin Swinderman Mitchell, who called her “a great student” and she also had help from Don Stewart.
“It’s something I really care about,” she was quoted as saying when discussing her feelings about riding.
“I really want to succeed and do well.”
Hannah’s obituary noted “Her passion was riding horses, so it is a blessing that she entered heaven’s gates on one. However, she would have ridden a cow if that’s all she had.”
Hannah was involved in 4-H and raised pigs for sale to help pay for her riding. She also ran track, played basketball and competed in the junior jumpers, was the reserve champion in the 2021 Southeast Regional Finals. In February, she won the USEF Talent Search at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Fla. The previous month, she took the ASPCA Maclay class at WEC on Quaxx.
Susie Schoellkopf, who judged her at the WEC equitation finals, posted on social media that “her ability and passion stood out in the ring.” Jimmy Torano, who was judging the class with Susie, called Hannah, “a talent gone way too soon. As a parent, this one hits home.”
In her memory, people are asked to use the tag, “#rideforhannah” on social media.