48 SIDELINES JULY 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
Article and photos by Lindsay Y. McCall
B
orn in Richland, Washington, in 1985, Roxanne Trunnell
was a competitive and determined young girl. From a
young age Roxy didn’t just look at riding horses as a
pastime, but as a sport that she wanted to excel in so she could
one day reach the Olympics. She hasn’t realized that goal yet,
but is well on her way to achieving it — even though her life has
changed drastically.
With the support from her two older sisters, an older brother and
her parents, Josette and Sid, Roxy was able to spend more time
in the saddle while being home-schooled. After starting her own
small business as a teenager to finance her dream Warmblood,
she purchased her first big-time horse, Nice Touch (Touché) in
2003.
With a top-notch horse and a full riding schedule, Roxy began
making her way through the dressage ranks, earning her Bronze
medal along the way. She never took her foot off the pedal of life
and obtained her bachelor’s degree in psychology at Washington
State University in 2008. She was 24 years of age, was showing
Fourth Level dressage and schooling Prix St. Georges and she
was an independent adult.
Josette and Sid were already in empty nest mode with their four
children out of the house. Sid had just retired, and he and Josette
were ready to take their brand new fifth wheel for a few camping
adventures and leave the horses to Roxy, who was financially and
physically capable of supporting herself. Then, on October 31,
2009, life as the Trunnell family knew it would change forever.
It was just like any other day for Roxy. She had just graduated
from WSU and was working nights at a hotel as their front desk
person and days at a dog kennel to pay her bills while she tossed
around the idea of going back to school. “I was feeling a little sick
that day like I had a cold, but I thought I could sleep it off after I
finished my day at the dog kennel,” recalled Roxy. “It came as
a shock that night when I wasn’t able to stand up without falling
over.”
Sid and Josette rushed her to the hospital and Josette, a family
nurse practitioner, knew it had to be serious. “My first thoughts
were that this was a transient illness,” explained Josette. “We were
seeing a lot of swine flu in the office and thought that was what it
e
Para-Equestrian
When Life
Changes
Roxy and Nice Touch at the 2014 Adequan Global Dressage
Festival CPEDI*** in Wellington, Florida.
Roxy and Nice Touch at the 2013 Golden
State Dressage Classic CPEDI*** in Rancho
Murieta, California. This was Roxanne’s
first international para-dressage competition
following her illness.
