The following was published in the Nov. issue of the “Women’s Soccer Club Newsletter. As you will read, Margie is very gifted in many, many aspects; but her great love of horses is evident in what she is able to do with them, and how she manages her beautiful, clean, well cared for Hillside Farm.
Read the article after the jump
Excellence Pursued by Hard Work and Determination
By Ginny McCullough
I would like to introduce Margie Paur as the November Player Profile of the Month! Paur is a life-long equestrian and soccer player. When she is not at her day job at M&I Trust Company in West Bend as a Vice President in Personal Trust Administration or on the soccer field playing soccer, you will find her at Hillside Farm. Her horse farm is nestled in the heart of the Kettle Moraine. Hillside Farm is located on over 23 private acres in the secluded hills of Richfield.
How does a woman who has an undergraduate double major with an art and business degree from Mount Mary and an MBA from Marquette University, currently plays on a co-ed team, the “Baird White” Over 30 League B division team, the “Hawks” Women’s Open League B division team and subs for the Over 40 League, as well as serving on five boards, have time to own and operate a successful horse farm?
Paur is driven to excellence and pushes herself to reach her goals. Paur’s first passion has always been horses and is the Hillside’s Polo instructor. She also teaches Equine Management courses at Waukesha County Technical College. Her approach to training involves the rider treating the horse as an athlete and includes a focus on the special care needed for horses. Paur uses natural horsemanship techniques and gives natural horsemanship lessons on a case by case basis.
In addition to owning and managing the Hillside Farm with her husband Tom Riegert, and teaching polo and college courses, Paur also sits on the Advisory Board at WCTC. She’s a life-long horsewoman who as a youth was trained in Saddle seat and Western riding disciplines. As a young adult she trained in Hunter/Jumpers, later training in Polo and Dressage. Paur strongly believes in non-violent horse handling methods that create a safe learning environment for horse and rider.
After her start at playing soccer at the age of 14 as a goalkeeper for the freshman team at Pius XI High School, she returned focused on studies and after college, at the age of 26, Paur immersed herself in soccer. She played in a pick-up league, on a women’s league team called “Amazing Grays”, a co-ed team, and played on and co-captained a Men’s Over 30 team called the “Internationals” as the only female on the team. She said that “it was an enriching experience to play on a team with so many great players from all corners of the world”. In addition, she tried out for the Olympic Hopeful National Team in Appleton at the age of 28 when the team was first forming.
Paur also has an equivalent to an “E” coaching license and has coached a U-10 and a U-8 team in South Milwaukee. She coached Arrowhead High School’s women’s club soccer team along with her now-husband, Tom Riegert (who has a B coaching license), who agreed to assist her. Riegert and Paur had known each other for at least six years prior where he refereed when she played against Tom’s sisters’ team. Peggy and Bridget Riegert both currently play on the Arsenal Over 30 league A division team. Carpooling to their coaching job at Arrowhead High School, they started dating and soon became engaged for a number of years. They have been married now for 2 ½ years. Riegert, a mechanical engineer, is employed at Mared Mechanical and designs controls units.
After the women’s league disbanded, she couldn’t find any other organized women’s league so she stuck with co-ed until while an employee at Baird, Paur was recruited by Erin Nowakowski from the Baird Over 30 league team to play on the Baird team and has been playing on the team ever since for about 4 ½ years now.
” I was so excited to find the WSC because many of the women that I played with in the other league were playing in this hidden gem of a club! Before the WSC, there weren’t a lot of choices for women, and not the many different organized divisions and leagues that the WSC has. It is great to see that now there are many nights of women’s soccer that I can play on if I choose and many divisions to find the competition level that I want. The sky’s the limit! The WSC is well-organized and goes beyond purely soccer to help other causes such as the Children’s Playground and the Casino Respite Night for families dealing with epilepsy through fundraisers. I really like it when an establishment goes beyond themselves.”
Besides her marriage, she had to make another HUGE decision. Laurie Ansorge, a fellow soccer teammate and a real estate agent, knew of Paur’s equine interest and came upon Hillside Farm as an unadvertised sale. It was a natural fit as Paur had spent many hours riding horses at this farm. She knew the owners and the facility. Together, she and Riegert made their dream a reality. They have owned and managed Hillside Farm now for three years and haven’t looked back.
Although she had always been riding horses, she purchased her first horse seven years ago and now has 12 teaching horses at the farm. She started playing polo five years ago. When asked how she can do both soccer and polo, she said, “I love team sports. It is not how good one player is. Rather, it is how good the team plays together. I would much rather play on a team with team players than on a team of superstars. Polo is very similar to soccer but with horses and a mallet on a stick. The outdoor ball used to be made of hard wood the size of baseball but now they are made of hard plastic. We have outdoor as well as indoor polo games with four player on a side. The indoor balls are made with an air-filled bladder the size of a softball and we hit it off the sides of the wall like we do in indoor soccer.”
Want to know what it’s like to learn how to play polo as an adult? Ask Ann Sherwood -Over 30 Baird White team. She and her daughter both play. Don’t own a horse but want more information about leasing one? Ask Ann Sherwood asherwood@rwbaird.com. Over 30 Blast B team’s Karen Cullen’s daughter also rides at Paur’s farm. If you’d like to learn more about how to play polo for children and adults, or just want to give it a try, please don’t hesitate to contact Margie Paur of Hillside Farm. First Polo lessons are always free! Check out her farm! http://www.hillsidefarmllc.com/. When you see Margie Paur on the soccer field or on a horse playing polo, don’t forget to say hello to another awesome, intelligent, strong, determined and hard-working woman of the WSC!
