09/04/2025
Hello everyone. Rick Capone here with the 174thrd installment of our Old Friends’ Throwback Thursday Memories. On a personal level, this week’s article is a hard one to write because this week we remember the farm’s longest tenured retiree and official “spokeshorse” of Old Friends, the beloved Little Silver Charm, who passed away last week.
Over the years, since Old Friends opened its gates, the farm has had many Thoroughbreds that have called the farm home. There have been some “big-name” horses on the farm that won some of the biggest races in the sport, like the Kentucky Derby and the Breeders’ Cup Classic, and received many awards and honors. There have been horses that won some races, made some money, and made their owners and their fans very happy. And, there have been other horses that ran in a lot races, gave everything they had, but didn’t win any.
You would think one of those Thoroughbreds would be the biggest stars at Old Friends. But, you would be wrong.
In reality, the biggest star at Old Friends even before the farm opened its gate has been a cute miniature horse named Little Silver Charm, and he’s ruled over the farm with an iron hoof; albeit, a friendly iron hoof.
His origin and pedigree is unknown, though it looks like there might have been some Shetland pony in his breeding.
What is known is that he had moxie, he was spunky, and he was young at heart. He also had a shock of white hair that just might have made trainer Bob Baffert a bit envious.
In addition, among other things, he had his own page with a following of almost 7,000 fans, and he also loved to play soccer from time to time with Michael.
Now, Little Silver Charm should not be confused with 1997 Kentucky Derby winner, Silver Charm, though if you asked the little guy he would tell you different. He believes they have the same bloodlines. And, when the Classic champion arrived on the farm in 2014, Little Silver Charm taught him what to expect during his retirement at the farm, and the two became very good friends.
There’s no question that Little Silver Charm had a heart the size of any Thoroughbred at Old Friends and that he believed he was just as strong, just as fast, and just as beautiful as any of them. For sure, he was beautiful little horse.
The lives of Little Silver Charm and Michael intersected back when Michael was working at Rockingham Park in Salem, New Hampshire in 2001. His friend, Lorita Lindemann, who was his trainer at the track, was the person who actually rescued Little Silver Charm off a slaughter truck.
According to Michael, Little Silver Charm “was on a truck with some ducks, a goat, and, I think, some horses. He was sticking his head out, and he was a mess. But, the touching part about it was that he had a few tiny little bows left from wherever he had been. Possibly, some little girl had dressed him up and the family that had him didn’t expect he was going to end up on a killer truck. I mean, he’d been dressed up, and he’d been fixed up, and the guy driving the truck, obviously, wasn’t telling the truth when it came to where this little horse was going. Anyway, Lorita purchased all the animals on the truck, including Little Silver Charm, for $40.
“So, I show up one day and there’s this little horse,” Michael continued. “I took him out and walked him around, and he was mean, and he would pull you all over the place. He was just a nut case. Then, when he got into his stall, he’d go way in the back and hide.”
Interestingly, according to Michael, his original name was Brownie. But, he didn’t look anything like a Brownie. He wasn’t even brown in color. In fact, he was a bit gray and he had a beautiful, over-sized, white mane. So, Michael named him Little Silver Charm in honor of his all-time favorite horse, Silver Charm.
So when Michael and his wife, Diane, moved to Kentucky, Little Silver Charm came with them. When they arrived in Kentucky, they settled in Midway and the house they lived in had a big fenced in yard, which is where Little Silver Charm lived. And, funny story, at times, the little guy would even come into the house.
“He'd knock on the door when he wanted to come in,” said Michael. “He'd come right up on the deck and knock on the door. It was funny. … I had previously brought him up on the deck. It was three steps up to the deck, so he knew how to get up on it, and it was easy for him to do.
“Anyway, I was in the living room watching TV one day, and I see this little face at the door, and all of a sudden I hear, bang, bang, bang… And I thought, ‘Oh, he walked up there by himself now, because he knows there’s carrots up here.’ I wonder if he’ll come in.
“So, I just opened the door and went back and sat down. About 10 minutes later, he came in, and when he did, I gave him a carrot. And, then he wanted to come in all the time.”
Some days Michael would put a lead on his little friend and walk him around town. He even took him to a bar in town, and while he had a drink, Little Silver Charm would wait patiently until he was finished. In time it seemed that everyone in town loved the little guy.
And, no question, Little Silver Charm was also a bit mischievous at times. Michael explains: This event happened only a couple weeks after we had settled into our house in Midway with Little Silver Charm in the yard. “So one night I left the gate open in the yard by mistake. Two o'clock in the morning there’s a bang, bang, bang at the front door. I’m like, ‘What the hell?’ I open up the door and there’s this old guy there – a night watch guy up at the neighboring farm. And he goes say, ‘Aren’t you the fellow with a little horse in his yard?’ I go, ‘Yes, sir.’ He goes, ‘Well, you better come get him. He’s up here with our mares.’ I said, ‘Okay.’ So I get dressed, I hop in the car, I go up and go up the back road and around here and around there. And sure enough, they caught him and he’s in a stall in the barn and he’s cowering in the back because he knows he did something that wasn’t exactly right. I put the shank on him and walked him home and he never escaped again.
Of course, when Old Friends moved to Dream Chase Farm in Georgetown, Little Silver Charm made the move as well.
On the farm, there was a small paddock next to the big barn, and that’s where Little Silver Charm soon called home. It was a perfect size for him. Plus, according to Michael, since miniature horses can founder easily, it was easier to control his eating in the smaller round paddock as well.
Unfortunately, at the time, the paddock did not have a run-in shed, but that was soon remedied.
“All the other big horses had their run-in sheds, all done by the Amish,” said Michael. “Well, the boy scouts came through on a tour one day, and one of the kids decided that Little Silver Charm needed his own place. So, as his Eagle Scout project, he and his fellow scouts built him a run-in shed. As a result, Little Silver Charm had one of the best run-in sheds on the farm. It was totally his. No pre-fab for me says Silver Charm. I want the big house.”
About the time the run-in shed was completed, Little Silver Charm was starting to become one of the biggest hits on the tour. People would come to Old Friends to see the Thoroughbreds, but before they’d leave, they were all talking about Little Silver Charm.
Interestingly, Little Silver Charm’s biggest claim to fame came when People Magazine came to do a feature about Old Friends. The article was in the August 18, 2008 issue of the magazine. (Note: It’s the one that had Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie on the cover with their newborn twins.)
In the article there was a photo of Michael with Popcorn Deelites and Special Ring, and a photo of Michael and Diane in the barn with – who else – Little Silver Charm. With that issue, Little Silver Charm's stature and public image began to grow in leaps and bounds.
“The people at People Magazine told me that Little Silver Charm got more letters than the story about Angelina Jolie’s babies,” said Michael.
Now, Little Silver Charm always said that he was the busiest horse on the farm. And, he was right.
One of the things he did was mentor all horses that retired to the farm. It didn’t matter if they were geldings who never won a race, or if they were Kentucky Derby winners. They all got the same initiation information from the little guy.
He would explain to them what was expected of them – nothing. They were there to enjoy their lives and just be horses again. However, for the ones that ended up being on the tours, he would explain that you had to meet all of the folks on the tours, do some playful and fun things, and accept any and all treats like carrots or Mrs. Pastures Cookies politely. Don’t “grab,” but take them gently from the person offering them to you.
In addition, busy little horse that he was, he even found the time to write a book. It was titled, “A Charmed Life,” as told to Diane White, who is Michael’s wife. She interpreted everything Little Silver Charm would say over the years.
“My wife is his ghostwriter, and his book is actually in the Library of Congress,” Michael said.
Little Silver Charm also had a second book written about him. It was by long time Old Friends supporter, Dan Rhema, and titled, simply, “Little Silver Charm.” In a review by Eclipse Award winning writer, the late Bill Mooney, he wrote: “Little Silver Charm” is an imaginative, engaging book, filled with charming characters – old friends and some new ones, too – along with an incorrigible villain to add spice to the mix. Goodness and love triumph in the end, of course, as they forever should.”
In addition to his duties around the farm, Little Silver Charm also took on an off-farm duty as well, when he recently became the “spokeshorse” for the city of Georgetown.
No question, over the years, Little Silver Charm became one of the biggest stars on the farm and, when Michael was around he’d always bring the little guy out to greet the people on the tours, who would fall in love with the little guy. Children especially loved to see Little Silver Charm, especially because he was closer to their own size. And, Little Silver Charm enjoyed all of the attention.
In time, Little Silver Charm enjoyed living in other paddocks on the farm from one that was at the top of the hill next to a gazebo, to a smaller one right outside Michael and Diane’s home, and to his final one – a round pen right across from big Silver Charm. And, at one point, he even got to live in a full-size paddock built for Thoroughbreds, and he seemed to love it as he got to run around all over it. All of the paddocks he was in were in places where people on tours would get to see him.
Michael and Little Silver Charm travelled a long road together over the years. Still, time passed, Little Silver Charm got older, and in time his age caught up with him. Sadly, last Friday, Aug. 29, 2025, the sweet little horse who had been at Old Friends since it opened, was euthanized due to the infirmities of old age. It is believed his age was around 38-40.
In a way, with his passing, it is the end of an era at Old Friends. Little Silver Charm saw the farm when it began with only one paddock and one retired Thoroughbred, the mare, Narrow Escape. And, he saw it grow to almost 300 acres with over 300 retired Thoroughbreds at the main farm, as well as a few annexes around Georgetown, and even a satellite farm in Saratoga Springs, New York.
On a personal note, there is one memory of Little Silver Charm and Michael I will always cherish getting to see. It was something that happened almost every day. Michael would walk over to Little Silver Charm’s paddock, and when the little guy would see him coming, he’d walk over to his fence to greet him.
Michael would open the gate, go into the paddock and give his little buddy some carrots or his favorite, ginger snaps. He would check him over, and maybe clean his hooves. Then he’d put a lead on his little friend, and together they would take a walk around the farm.
They would visit some of the horses, especially Silver Charm (the two seemed to really like each other), or they’d take a walk down the long driveway up to the office. It was always so beautiful to see. Two friends, one man and one small equine, just taking a walk and spending time together, enjoying each other’s company. I’ll miss seeing the two of them together.
Another fun thing to see was sometimes Michael would just sit down in a chair and read his Daily Racing Form, while Little Silver Charm would graze on some grass nearby. Sometimes he’d even look over Michael’s shoulder and “help him pick some winners.”
Sadly, getting to see the two of them together is over. It was definitely a sad day at Old Friends when Little Silver Charm passed away.
Run free little guy, with the wind in your face as you gallop across heaven’s endless fields of grass and see all of the Old Friends horses, your old friends, once again. And, please know you will be missed by everyone who ever met you, myself included, but most especially by your family, Michael and Diane.
