40 • The WRANGLER • July, 2024
A Wide 'Open' Future
By Rebacca Talbott
Callie Turner in the reined cow horse, on Cupid. Photo Credit: High Cotton Promotions
"I didn't really choose horse training; Horse training "I didn't really choose horse training; Horse training
kinda chose me." - Callie Turner kinda chose me." - Callie Turner
For a Lot of high schooL graduates, the
next move is to pursue a college degree. That includes
searching for an academic program that will send them
off into their future career or field of expertise. Ultimately,
landing them a 9-5 job that pays for their homes, cars, bills,
hobbies, and desired lifestyles. It all sounds good when a
person weighs out the costs, benefits, and commitment.
However, for Callie Turner, that move just wasn't as clear.
She began looking at Universities and career opportunities.
Trying to decide what job she could have in the future that
would allow her to work and have the time to train her own
horses on the side, wasn't as easy as she had hoped. They
all seemed to require a certain level of time that wouldn't
allow her to be as devoted to training and showing her
own horses as she had hoped for.
There were plenty of offers to compete on competitive
collegiate Ranch Horse show teams, but that still didn't
fill her cup. No stranger to commitments, she knew she'd
need to be focused on her education while in college.
Knowing that she had goals of major bucket list wins in
the horse show arena, that meant that something in the
equation was going to have to give.
She found herself faced with a major life choice; one that
would ultimately define the road ahead. This bright young
lady would soon step into a wide "open" future!
How then, did she become the Assistant Trainer for Matt
Turner Performance Horses? Her profound response to the
question indicates that God had bigger plans for her life.
"I didn't really choose horse training; horse training kinda
chose me."
She continued to explain her decision by stating, "I say
that because when I was fixin' to graduate from high
school, I kinda always said, 'no!' I don't think I'll go be a
horse trainer. I'll just show my own horses and train them
myself."
When Turner began to think about what career path she
would choose in college, some concerns about her deep
