By Laura Scaletti
Portraits by Melissa Fuller
By the time Olivia Murray was 5 years old, she had tried all the typical childhood sports—soccer, swimming, basketball and more. While she was good at most of them, she didn’t really enjoy doing any of them. It took a car ride around her hometown in Wilmington, North Carolina, with her mom for Olivia to discover her sport of choice.
“As we were driving around town, I pointed out a sign on the side of the road that said, ‘Summer Horse Riding Camp.’ My parents were surprised by my interest because no one in my family had ever had anything to do with horses,” Olivia said. “After some convincing, they signed me up for it.”
Although Olivia’s mom agreed to camp, she wasn’t sure it was going to be a good match for Olivia. “When she dropped me off for camp, she drove away just knowing that I wouldn’t enjoy it because it was dirty, hot and smelly. When she came back that afternoon to pick me up, I came around the back of the farm covered in dirt, sweaty, with a can of Coke in my hand—at the time I’d never been a soda drinker,” she said. “I got in the car, told her how much I loved it, and the rest is history.”
After camp ended, Olivia was lucky to find an “equine fairy godmother” in the form of her mother’s coworker. “Once Rebecca Rahall (now Rebecca Parker) heard how interested I was in riding, she offered for me to come ride her Shetland pony, Magnum. She never really intended for him to be a lesson pony and didn’t own tack for him. My first few months of riding were bareback, in a halter on a Shetland pony,” Olivia said.
Horse Girl
With her passion for horses cemented, Olivia’s parents gifted her with a lease on her first horse, Beauty, for her 7th birthday. Together, the duo began showing at local hunter shows, quickly moving up the levels. Olivia also took dressage lessons on Beauty and went to a few dressage shows, where she competed in lower-level tests. “Dabbling in dressage really helped me develop my seat and feel at a young age. To this day, I’m thankful for those lessons,” she said.
Olivia’s first horse that she owned, Cody, was the horse who truly taught her how to be a rider, not just a passenger. “He could be naughty, and oftentimes he was. I suffered a few broken bones, concussions, etc. I have memories of riding with my arm in a cast, but it didn’t deter me, and I was never scared,” she said.
Cody was the first of many horses that taught Olivia that hard work pays off, and how even though success might not be immediate, it will come. As Olivia outgrew Cody, she began leasing horses who helped her gain experience in the Children’s Hunters and equitation.
“Growing up, I always knew I was a strong rider, but I was aware that I would never be able to have a string of horses to show myself on the A-circuit. I owe it to my childhood trainers, Ginny Reilly and Mehdi Kazemi, who never let me give up,” she said.
Ginny took Olivia to her first rated competitions. “She would tell me that she was never able to afford the nicest horse at the horse show, but she was taught how to make the best of what she had. I owe a lot of my training to Ginny; she made me do all the hard things like putting a whip behind my back and tying my stirrups to my girth to strengthen my position,” Olivia said. “I’m grateful for her, as I still use what she taught me in lessons I teach today.”
In middle school, Olivia joined the Old Homestead Farm IEA team where Mehdi Kazemi was the coach. “Mehdi was a big, strong man with a loud, projecting voice. He was a great trainer, very direct, to the point, and he loved the horses,” she said. “Regardless of what kind of horse you were on, he taught you how to work through each horse’s different idiosyncrasies, and how to make the most of each animal.”
IEA gave Olivia the opportunity to ride many different horses in a competitive setting, something she wouldn’t have been able to do on the A-circuit. “My family could only ever afford one horse at a time, so during high school I focused on the hunters with my personal Junior horse, Danny, while still competing in the IEA. I went to IEA nationals a few times with the Old Homestead team,” Olivia said. “I am very grateful for the opportunity to do the IEA. It taught me how to adapt to different animals quickly, which now helps me tremendously.”
SCAD Opportunities
When Olivia started her college search, her trainer Phil Long, who helped her at rated shows at the time, suggested she look into Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). “Phil thought it would be a good place for me since they had both a riding team and an equestrian studies major. I decided to take a tour of the school and the farm,” she said. “Once I saw the farm, I was sold. The facility is so beautiful and the location is amazing.”
Olivia initially went down the advertising/user experience design path with her studies, but soon realized that while she’s artistic, she wasn’t artistic enough. “I thought about it and the more I started working with horses, I decided the equestrian major was best for me,” she said.
Being part of SCAD’s IHSA team was one of Olivia’s favorite parts of her collegiate experience. “I loved IHSA. It was the perfect balance of being part of a college team, while also having time to be a real college student,” Olivia said.
In 2020, during Olivia’s junior year at SCAD, she was selected to be part of their ANRC National Equitation Championships team scheduled for that April. While at the barn practicing a few weeks prior, Olivia found out the competition was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Not long after, SCAD was closed and everything went online. No more riding, no more going to class, no more team workouts, no more anything. Time went on and nothing was changing,” Olivia said.
With the world coming to a halt, Olivia was bored and wanted a sense of normalcy and to get back on a horse. She reached out to trainer Courtney Goldstein, based out of Savannah, to see if she needed any help riding, which she did.
Olivia started helping Courtney and traveled to shows in Aiken, South Carolina, that summer and fall. She even had the opportunity to help Courtney at the 2020 National Horse Show.
As winter was approaching, a lot of Olivia’s friends began talking about going to Wellington for the 2021 WEF circuit. With classes still online, Olivia thought this could be her chance to travel to WEF for the winter too. Knowing Olivia’s desire, Courtney used her connections to make Olivia’s wish happen.
“While at Bruce’s Field that December, we were in the schooling ring at a jump next to Liza Boyd. Courtney walked up to Liza and asked if they were looking for any help in Wellington. Liza turned around and said yes! Liza and I exchanged numbers, and the next thing I knew I was packing my bags and driving down to Wellington to work for Finally Farm for the 2021 WEF circuit,” Olivia said. “I loved it! I was riding nice horses and learning a lot from Liza and her father, Jack Towell.”
After working the 12-week circuit for Finally Farm, Olivia impressed both Jack and Liza. “Jack came up to me and said, ‘Let us know what your plans are after you graduate. We would love for you to keep working for us,’” she said.
Olivia headed back to campus, graduated that spring, declared her professional status and has been with Finally Farm ever since. “Going to SCAD was the best decision I could have made. I made connections that helped me get to where I am today, and I also found a great group of friends who will last a lifetime, in and out of the horse world,” she said.
Finally Farm
Today, Olivia is an assistant trainer and manager for Finally Farm. “I think being on the SCAD Equestrian Team really helped me be able to move on and work with a professional team like Finally Farm. At SCAD, we were each assigned to a horse at the shows, had to take care of it and get it to the ring on time,” she said. “At the time, you were just having fun on the team not realizing that’s exactly what you’d be doing in the real world.”
Olivia eagerly returned to Finally Farm after graduation because she loved how Liza and Jack ran their family business. “They treat me like part of their family, which I feel is very hard to come by in this industry. Liza and Jack understand that there is life outside of horses, which is very important. I typically work at the shows and on our days off, I get to travel home, too,” she said. “Their clients are great, and they have nice horses. What more could you ask for?”
Much like her experience at SCAD, Olivia enjoys how everyone at Finally Farm works as a team. “Everyone’s opinions and ideas are valued, which is what makes us so successful. Both Jack and Liza have taught me a lot about what it takes to be a successful show barn: training different types of riders, preparing different types of horses, and how to be a professional horsewoman and rider,” she said.
Since becoming a professional in 2021, Olivia has relied on the skills she developed growing up to find her niche in the sport. “It felt like I was always trying to fix a horse that had a hole in its training somewhere or bring a green horse along. I was never able to afford the $500,000 push-button horse, but I Iearned how to ride those that would buck me off and rear, and it made me a stronger rider. That carried on to my days at SCAD and even today at Finally Farm,” Olivia said. “Whenever we get a new one into the barn, I’m the test pilot before Liza takes the reins.”
The niche that Olivia has found is preparing horses for the show ring. “Becoming a successful young professional in the horse industry doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be the next top hunter or jumper rider. To me, success is finding your niche in the industry and being the best you can be in that niche. I’ve realized that I’m most valued in the position of preparing horses, training/teaching and helping behind the scenes to make sure each horse is ready to perform to the best of its abilities,” she said.
Thanks to Jack’s “old school” horseman mentality, Olivia has truly learned how much letting horses be horses benefits them in the long run. “We ride them once a day, then let them have their time to be horses. That helps keep the horses happy and healthy. They’re more likely to perform their best when they’re comfortable,” she said.
Olivia’s favorite part of her job is getting to know each horse, finding out what works best for them and seeing all that hard work carry over into the show ring. She’s most proud of helping Liza with her chestnut mare, Ondine D’Orleans, who came to them mid-circuit at WEF 2024.
“She’s very much a ‘chestnut mare,’ so it took us all some time to figure her out. But it came full circle this WEF 2025 when Liza and Ondine won the $150,000 WCHR Peter Wetherill Palm Beach Hunter Spectacular. That win wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the entire Finally Farm team,” Olivia said. “It truly takes a village, and being part of that village is a really special feeling.”
Olivia can’t imagine being part of any other village. “I truly enjoy what I’m doing now and I don’t foresee that changing anytime soon,” she said. “I love the horses and without them, I’m not sure what I would do.”
Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamurraay
Photos by Melissa Fuller, melissafullerphotography33.mypixieset.com
