From behind her desk at White Fences Equestrian Center, Barbie Piccinni can look out a window and watch as her students and their horses canter gracefully in an adjacent covered arena. Sometimes while she’s working, she’ll turn and catch a glimpse of other horses frolicking together in nearby paddocks.

“I love to watch horses gallop and play,” Piccinni says. “They couldn’t do that at our previous location. So being here is a dream come true.”

White Fences, founded in 1989, was originally based on nine acres along Onion Creek south of downtown Austin, Texas. “It was just too crowded for 70 horses, and we wanted to get out of the city,” Piccinni explains.

Wanting a more rural setting, in 2002 Piccinni and her Realtor found 52 undeveloped acres in northeastern Travis County. “He said that Farm Credit Bank was making loans that were reasonable, but I had to buy at least 30 acres,” she recalls.

Coincidentally, one of her riding students, Amie Pala, works for Farm Credit Bank as vice president of finance. She introduced Piccinni to Capital Farm Credit President Mark Rutledge, and the two worked out a finance plan.

“She has literally transformed this place,” Rutledge says, referring to the attractive complex of arenas, corrals and stables, contained within a maze of white wooden fences. “Everything you see here is totally different from what it was when she purchased the property. There was just native grass with barbed wire fences and a depreciated manufactured home. I remember thinking there was no improvement value here. But with tons of work and hard-earned money, this lady, who has lots of business savvy, made it all happen.”

Piccinni also has a deep inner strength. The year after she and husband Richard Willis married in 1992, he suffered a stroke on their belated honeymoon in Taos and was left bedridden. In addition to caring for him full-time, Piccinni ran her equestrian business (which then included kennels), parented her two young daughters, and maintained the family’s household. “I just did what I had to do,” she says simply.

Proving Creditworthy
At first, Rutledge was hesitant to loan Piccinni money because of her husband’s uncertain credit standing, but seeing her determination to persevere convinced him that she’d be a good credit risk. Willis unexpectedly died a few days after Piccinni obtained her loan, but she paid it off early and has since acquired an operating loan from Capital Farm Credit.

Piccinni, who’s known in the equestrian world for being tough but fair, trains both horses and riders in hunter/jumper and dressage, a competitive form of riding in which the rider and horse are judged on the elegance, precision and discipline of the horse’s movements. She also competes herself and has won numerous regional and international awards.

Of the approximate 60 horses that board at White Fences, 20 belong to Piccinni, including magnificent Sandro, an Oldenberg breed from Germany, and Tango, a warmblood from Holland. Her cherished favorite, though, is Sunny, an elderly Arab-Morgan cross.

“He was my first horse,” she says, nodding toward a framed photo of him at her desk. “I bought him when I was 14 in 1974 with my babysitting money. My dad was against it because he thought I’d lose interest in having a horse, but my mom always encouraged me. I paid $50 for him, and I still have the receipt. Sunny has free run of this whole place. Wherever he wants to go, he goes!”

Picking up a packaged apple pie, she smiles and adds, “This is his birthday cake. He turns 34 in a few days.”

A Horse-Lover Since Age 5
Piccinni has loved horses since the age of five, when she lived in Michigan and attended a day camp that offered horseback riding. From there, her passion — nurtured along the way by her mother Phyllis McNamee — just grew and grew. “When I was 10, she’d take me to a riding stable on the weekends and pay $5 so I could ride for an hour,” Piccinni says.

As a teenager, Piccinni and Sunny worked every day after school with master trainer Barbara Ezel, “who took me under her wing,” she says. “I worked with her for four months and won my first first-place in open jumper in 1974.”

Over the years, Piccinni has ridden with a number of top-notch trainers and Olympic riders. “That’s how you learn,” she says.

In the early ‘80s, she and her first husband, Ciro Piccinni, moved from Michigan to Austin, where they worked together in the restaurant business. Following their divorce, Piccinni started White Fences as a hobby. Then she remarried. “After Richard had the stroke, my hobby turned into a business,” she says. “It had to.”

Moving from Austin to the country allowed Piccinni to add more services, which increased her sources of income.

“Barbie is one of the most astute women entrepreneurs I know,” observes Farm Credit’s Amie Pala, a dressage student at White Fences for five years. “She definitely knows how to cater to her clients and meet their needs. She continually adds more value to her business by adding services that her clients want.”

For example, guests have access to the center’s extensive riding trails, and group trail rides may be scheduled. The center is even available for group picnics, birthday parties, reunions and other special events.

Like Mother, Like Daughter
Like their mother, daughters Angel and Gina love horses. Gina, another award-winning rider, worked for Piccinni in the past but has since ventured out on her own as a professional rider and trainer. Angel, who has a full-time job in banking, occasionally gives lessons.

“They’ve always both been a great help to me,” Piccinni says. “I remember when Gina was seven years old, she’d water the horses every morning before school, and Angel would answer the phones.”

At White Fences, Piccinni also couldn’t do without manager Ascencion Hernandez, who has worked for her since 1993. “He practically built this place,” she says.

Though many people have helped along the way, still it’s Piccinni’s iron strength and remarkable vision that have made White Fences Equestrian Center such a financial success. Business associates like Rutledge couldn’t agree more.

“What Ms. Piccinni has been able to accomplish despite significant obstacles, both personal and professional, is an inspiration to us all,” Rutledge says. “She models the spirit of perseverance for each of us to follow.”