Caledonia Argus

Horse sale set stage for love

Posted: 4/1/03

by Jane Palen
Managing editor

The Horse and Mule Sale may not seem like a place to find romance, but it turned out that way for Lee Cryderman of Manitoba, Canada, and Rita Schultz, formerly of Houston, who met for the first time at last Septemberís Horse and Mule Sale in Caledonia and are now making plans for a July wedding.

Lee and Rita were actually looking for horses, not love, when their paths crossed last fall. They were introduced by mutual friends, Craig and Lore Frondall. Rita remembers being overcome with a sudden case of shyness.

ìHe was the first horse person I ever met that I couldnít look in the eye when we shook hands,î she said.

That was on a Friday, and when the couple that introduced Lee to Rita asked her to join them for dinner, she wanted to, but needed to get her daughter back to her fatherís house in Altoona, so she had to decline the invitation.

The next day, the two were again at the horse sale and sought each other out, but other than spying each other from a distance, they never connected.

Lee left for Canada the next day, and that might have been the end of things. But a little luck and a little match-making ensured that it wasnít.

It was Ritaís daughter Crystal who got Leeís phone number and passed it along to her mother. So while Lee was kicking himself for not asking for the number, he was pleasantly surprised when Rita called him. That phone call led to many, many more between September and December.

ìWe ran up some mighty big phone bills,î said Lee.

In December, Rita and Crystal traveled to Canada for a weekís vacation. Crystal was going to see about working for the Frondalls, and Rita and Lee wanted to get together. On Boxing Day, December 26, Lee proposed and Rita accepted. A little over a month later, Lee helped her move her belonging up to his ranch in Canada.

For Lee, finding love at a horse sale was an unexpected bit of serendipity.

ìI wasnít thinking of meeting anyone. I wasnít even going to go,î said Lee, who has been a regular visitor to the Horse and Mule Sale since the days it was held in Spring Grove. But, he decided it would be nice to get away, and drove down to the sale. He had missed a sale in 2001 because his wife was ill, and she passed away shortly thereafter. He has four children who are now 3, 12, 14 and 18. He had only recently decided to start dating again, but expected a long road to a lasting relationship.

ìI live in a very rural community, the population is sparse,î explained Lee. ìI had a pretty good marriage and I wasnít going to settle for anything less.î

Lee and Rita found lots of common ground that began their interest in horses. A native of Lanesboro, Rita says she has been a horse person since sheís been able to walk. Her parents, Paul and Dorothy Schultz, who now live in Canton, raised Belgians. Lee has 170 head of spotted draft horses. Through their numerous phone conversations, they found they had much more in common than a love of horses. By the time they saw each other face to face, they had already fallen in love.

ìWe seemed to know each other well already, it made things simple,î said Lee.

It was no easy thing for Rita to leave a job that she had for more than 22 years at TRW in Winona, but she said she was ready for a change.

Lee reports that the weather in Manitoba this winter was extremely coldósome days it was between 40 to 45 degrees below zero, and there was several feet of snow on the ground all winter.

ìIt was one of the coldest winters weíve had,î said Lee. But the snow is melting now, and the creeks are beginning to run. Rita and his children are adjusting just fine to the new arrangement. He said it hasnít been easy for Rita, who has a daughter in Altoona and another, Heather, in Arkansas, but said that the couple will plan long trips back in order to see Ritaís family.

ìIím trying to make her as happy as possible,î said Lee.

The couple is busy making plans for their wedding, which will take place in a barn on their ranch. Theyíll pull out some stalls and get the barn decked out for the festivities.

The couple was looking forward to a trip to the Horse and Mule Sale April 10-12, but wonít be able to make it this time. They will most likely be back for Septemberís sale and reminisce about how one short meeting led to a lasting relationship.

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