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Canton horse farm receives $20,000 micro-enterprise loan to build larger indoor riding facility

Posted 12/4/10

CANTON – An 11-year-old horse farm has received a $20,000 loan from the St. Lawrence County Local Development Corporation Microenterprise Revolving Loan Fund for construction of an indoor horse …

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Canton horse farm receives $20,000 micro-enterprise loan to build larger indoor riding facility

Posted

CANTON – An 11-year-old horse farm has received a $20,000 loan from the St. Lawrence County Local Development Corporation Microenterprise Revolving Loan Fund for construction of an indoor horse riding arena and boarding stables.

Honey Dew Acres, LLC was established in 1999 by Peggy McAdam and her husband, Mark Cambridge. Combining their love for horses, children and horse sports, they began giving riding lessons on their three-acre farm.

Today, Honey Dew Acres is a full-service, family owned and operated equestrian facility offering lessons, boarding and training on their over 200 acre farm on Post Road. It is the largest, most diversified facility in the county, and the only one in the area to offer certified instructors.

Peggy has been around horses since her teenage years and serves as farm manager. She is a graduate of the Grapevine, Texas, School of Horseshoeing as a farrier, and is a certified instructor in riding and driving. Mark is head of maintenance, using his skills in mechanics, carpentry, plumbing and heating to keep the farm running smoothly.

Daughter Emily Cambridge Carrier, a graduate of SUNY Potsdam, is Honey Dew’s Head instructor. In 2007, she was honored as one of the American Riding Instructors Association’s Top 50 Riding Instructors in America, and was named 2007 Instructor of the Year – Circle of Honor Status.

Daughter Tania Cambridge serves as barn manager. After receiving her biology degree from Clarkson University, worked with a number of veterinarians. She has managed show stables in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and brings that knowledge and experience to the family business.

Funds from the LDC loan will be used toward construction of a new, larger indoor riding facility which will enable the Cambridges to provide lessons year round. The plan includes additional stalls, which will help them to accommodate increasing customer demand for boarding stables.

“The agricultural sector is critical to our local economy,” said LDC Chief Executive Officer Raymond Fountain. “The LDC is committed to assisting agribusiness ventures such Peggy and Mark’s, and is pleased to be participating in their expansion at Honey Dew Acres.”

The LDC is a not-for-profit corporation which administers the Microenterprise Revolving Loan Fund and a Microenterprise Grant Program. The primary goal of the programs is to stimulate the inception and growth of private sector micro-enterprise businesses owned and operated by low-moderate income persons, or which create jobs for persons of low-moderate income.

The LDC is administered through a partnership with the county Industrial Development Agency.