Remin Whiz was owned up until February of 2008 by Lucy Van Swearingen, who lives with her husband Gordon and their daughter Tricia in Richmond Texas. While Lucy may have gotten a late start with horses, she has since fallen in love with them, and is especially inspired by the grace and athleticism of reining horses.

Lucy grew up in Pensacola, Florida. Much of her mettle and success in life is the result of valuable life lessons she learned from her father, Joe J. Harrell. An extremely successful and honest attorney, he wouldn't take money from those who couldn't afford it-even getting paid in oranges once. Yet, despite his humble demeanor, he won a case in the Supreme Court of the United States as a young man, and at one point he was temporary counsel for the Attorney General of the United States.

Though Joe was well known and accomplished, he was never out to impress anyone. He strived to be the best but never at the risk of stepping on anyone to get to the top. That sentiment has rubbed off on Lucy Van Swearingen as well. "To tell the truth, I much prefer the company of a bunch of cowboys or oil field tool pushers or roughnecks over a bunch of today's lawyers any day!" she laughs

Honor and integrity are the backbone of Lucy's family. In fact, Roger Scott, her maternal grandfather, was awarded the Carnegie Medal of Honor for risking his own life to save the life of another man.

But, Roger Scott is only one of many in Lucy's family with a passion for truth and fairness . Her father's grandfather, an Alabama doctor, with a degree from Louisville College of Medicine, stopped the lynching of a free, black man whose only crime was to own a grocery store. An impressive act of bravery considering he was a Confederate veteran of the Civil War who had lost his right arm at Gettysburg!

Family history and Southern roots have played an integral part in Lucy's life. " I have always been told that I should be able to dance with Kings and walk with Paupers and treat them both exactly the same," she says.

Lucy Van Swearingen has a rich and colorful family history that has stood the test of time well. It is a history she is very proud of. As far as her own history, Lucy graduated with 2 BS's from Vanderbilt University, in both geology and archaeology. After graduate school in geology at Tulane University, she worked as an Oil and gas Geologist at Amoco Production Company in New Orleans for 5 years. It was there that she met and married a fellow geologist, named Gordon Van Swearingen. Not long after, she quit work to raise their only child, daughter Tricia. Lucy and Gordon are pictured to the left.

After moving around to several different cities, the Van Swearingen finally moved to Richmond, Texas, where they are now. Currently, Gordon is Vice President of exploration of a 3-D seismic-service and analysis company named e-Seis, Inc.

Lucy Van Swearingen is also an artist, and, especially, a photographer. She sells her photographs from time to time. "My father was a consummate shutterbug throughout WWII in Europe. I am going to try to publish his photos in the next year or so," explains Lucy.

Shown to the right is a picture Lucy took of the Loomis Ranch at sunset. Loomis Ranch has long been famous in the reining industry, and is home to Remin Whiz's sire, Topsail Whiz.

The Van Swearingen family got involved with horses when daughter Tricia was 8 years old and decided she wanted to ride horses. And although Lucy owns top reining stallion Remin Whiz, Tricia has always had a passion for hunter jumpers. Now 16, she still is involved in that discipline.

Well, a few years went by, and Lucy got some inheritance after the death of her parents. It was at that time that the man who owned the barn that Tricia was riding at said he had found a horse that he wanted Lucy to buy as an investment. As it turns out, the owner of the barn was reining trainer Steve Archer. The horse was 2 year old, Remin Whiz. The rest is history!

After buying Remin Whiz, Lucy decided she wanted to learn reining. Archer found her a beautiful, older, porcelain gray gelding out of Easter Gentleman named 2T Easter Cutter. Lucy and 2T Easter Cutter are shown to the right.

Lucy and her family have enjoyed the various aspects of the horse industry, though Lucy points out that husband Gordon "does not ride, but would love to. When he tries to ride, he cannot walk afterward!"

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Remin Whiz
World Champion Reining Stallion

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