Don Diego Scholarship Foundation Board member Susan Farrior surprised Chair Kirby Morrison and fellow board members at Don Diego’s Nov. 20 board meeting by presenting a $10,000 donation on behalf of the Charity Fair Horse Show. Farrior and the Charity Fair Horse Show are founding members of Don Diego, which will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2026, according to a news release.
A longtime Rancho Santa Fe resident, Farrior is the inaugural president and current trustee of the Charity Fair Horse Show (www.charityfairhorseshow.com), which will take place at the Del Mar Fairgrounds on June 9-12, 2026. The annual event benefits Don Diego and the Helen Woodward Animal Center.
As he accepted the $10,000 check, Morrison noted, “Over the past several decades, Susan has made remarkable, enduring contributions to her community. We, at Don Diego, are grateful not only for the thousands of dollars in support of our mission, but also her wisdom and commitment to our board. Thanks to the generosity of people and organizations such as these, Don Diego has been able to significantly increase the number of scholarships and amount of funding.
“In our early years, we annually provided four $5,000 scholarships to four students for a total of $20,000. In 2025, 25 high-achieving San Diego County scholars sharing $93,500 in scholarships headed to prestigious colleges across the country to pursue their education and career goals.”
The Don Diego Scholarship Foundation was named for Don Diego, aka Tom Hernandez, who served as San Diego County Fair’s welcoming goodwill ambassador from 1947-1984. Since its inception in 1986, the Foundation has awarded $1,510,344 in scholarships to 434 students and in Plant*Grow*Eat agriculture education grants, which enable elementary students from San Diego area Title 1 schools to learn about agriculture and nutrition while enjoying a day at the fairgrounds, the news release stated.
Visit www.dondiegoscholarship.org for more information.