A group of young boys ride in the sleigh on Wednesday.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Dobbins Heights treats families to sleigh ride
Jessica Magee, left, rides in the sleigh with her grandchildren: Skylar, 6, Jace, 5, and Kinslee, 2.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Bob Smith looks back at his group as horses Kate and Pearl pull them through town.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
A young man steps into the sleigh for a ride through the Dobbins Heights streets.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Kate, left, and Pearl pull a sleigh full of Christmas carollers through the Dobbins Heights streets.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Dobbins Heights Mayor Antonio Blue pets Kate and Pearl before the sleigh ride Wednesday afternoon.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
School Board Member Ronald Tillman, left, and Juvenile Crime Prevention Council Chairman Curtis Ingram, second from right, take a ride in the sleigh with their loved ones on Wednesday.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Richmond County Partnership for Children Executive Director Katrina Chance helps out a group of children pick out their gift.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
A young man picks his toy from the selection laid out by the Richmond County Partnership for Children.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
The sleigh was a treat for families from around the area.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Bob Smith guides Kate and Pearl as they pull a group through the Dobbins Heights streets in their sleigh.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
The sleigh ride has become a beloved tradition in Dobbins Heights.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Bob Smith takes off with the first group in the sleigh.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
The Richmond County Partnership for Children provided free gifts for the children in attendance.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Bob Smith looks out over the crowd as they prepare to board the sleigh.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Many families brought their young children out to enjoy the sleigh ride.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
Sheriff Mark Gulledge meets Kate, left, and Pearl.
Gavin Stone | Daily Journal
DOBBINS HEIGHTS — Mayor Antonio Blue welcomed his good friends Kate and Pearl, two Percheron draft horses who are sisters, back to Dobbins Heights on Wednesday for the town’s annual sleigh ride through the neighborhood surrounding the Community Park.
“We go way back,” Blue said of the horses as he stroked their noses.
The horses belong to Bob Smith, owner of Gold Leaf Carriage. Blue has been inviting Smith to town for several years now to take local children on the most unique excursion one can get in Richmond County.
People of all ages lined up for a ride in the sleigh, many with young children in awe of Kate and Pearl. Prior to the start of the rides, Blue gave the floor to Sheriff Mark Gulledge who wished the crowd a merry Christmas.
“This is the biggest and baddest sleigh in town,” Gulledge said.
As they are pulled through the neighborhood, the group sang Christmas carols like “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and waved to passersby. The event was canceled last year due to COVID-19 concerns.
Jessica Magee of Dobbins Heights was leading the singers. She said she comes every year, and brought her grandchildren along: Skylar, 6, Jace, 5, and Kinslee, 2.
“Dobbins Heights does a great job with this,” Magee said. Skylar said the ride was “fun” and added that she had only seen horses as big as Kate and Pearl on T.V.
After their ride, the kids could take home a smaller present from Enviva, or a book from the Richmond County Partnership for Children (RCPC), and enter a drawing for a larger one appropriate for their respective age groups. The books were provided through the RCPC’s partnership with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library.
“This was great, I really enjoyed it,” said Sweets Sweatt of Hamlet, who came to the sleigh ride for the first time with her three children along with her sister and her two kids.
The event represented a partnership between the Town of Dobbins Heights, Enviva, the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, and Faith Assembly Outreach Ministries.
