EquestrianSingles.com is a unique online community, unlike any other dating site on the Internet. Its unprecedented sense of community not only promotes romance and friendship, but members are also involved in community service. Whether it is arranging for volunteers on horseback to search for a missing person, or sending two semi-trucks of hay to hurricane victims, there is clearly no other dating site like this.
EquestrianSingles.com recently acquired the popular web site, EquestrianMatch.com, securing its position as the front runner in equestrian matchmaking as its membership continues to grow at rapid pace. The site garners 1.6 million hits a day and averages more than a 1000 new members a month.
EquestrianSingles.com members all share a common bond in their love of horses. They sponsor trail rides, team ropings, parties and numerous events around the country. Whether it is a weekend trail ride or a benefit to help an injured rider, members feel a sense of camaraderie like any other community. The website has been called the first real cyber community on the Internet.
There are many ways EquestrianSingles.com affects positive changes in its member’s lives. Take member Teresa Lonadier, aka “Dakota123,” who discovered EquestrianSingles.com in 2002. Born with half a heart, and not expected to live, Teresa remained housebound and became a regular in EquestrianSingles.com’s chat rooms. Embraced by members who fondly referred to her as “Little Sis,” the website became the center of her social life.
A few years later, Teresa’s parents drove her to an EquestrianSingles.com gathering to meet her new friends in person. A huge rodeo fan, Teresa was overjoyed when PBR bullfighter, Brian Payne, asked her to dance. Teresa had a smile on her face the size of Texas, and told him it was the first time a boy had ever asked her to dance.
The following year Teresa was admitted to the hospital for heart surgery. Friends from the site remained in contact, sending thoughts and prayers through phone calls and the website’s message board. The surgery was complicated and Teresa’s heart eventually gave out. She passed away on June 8 of this year, at 28.  
EquestrianSingles.com’s community was devastated, expressing their grief through hundreds of posts on the message board. It was how many lives this isolated housebound girl had touched. Her aunt, Pam Rashid, wrote to EquestrianSingles.com: “I don’t believe that many people could understand just how much EquestrianSingles.com meant to Teresa. She had no siblings, rarely left her home, and her friends on EquestrianSingles.com became her whole world. Perhaps the appeal was the ability to get online and speak to friends around the country, giving her the ability to ‘leave’ home, if only for the time she was online.”
Though EquestrianSingles.com boasts 1000-plus marriages, their biggest successes come from members like Teresa, whose lives have been drastically changed. Marcia Zwilling, President/Founder of EquestrianSingles.com says, “We always envisioned an online community. Stories like Teresa’s confirm the site has exceeded our expectations.” Jan Mirkin, CEO/Founder of EquestrianSingles.com agrees, “Knowing the community we created has helped so many people truly is special.”
Realizing, like any community, people grieve for their loved ones, EquestrianSingles.com created a tribute page for members who have passed on and named a permanent chat room after Teresa called Dakota’s. The website prides itself on making a positive difference in people’s lives.
Recently, EquestrianSingles.com also formed a strong alliance with Texas Equusearch, the renowned search and rescue organization that gained notoriety in their search for Natalie Holloway in Aruba. Zwillling is particularly proud of this liaison. “When a person goes missing, time is of the essence. We were the perfect partners for Texas Equusearch. When we get the call we immediately send out an e-mail blast to a specified state calling for volunteers to help find the missing person. With an upcoming reality television series being developed, we look forward to many years of this meaningful partnership.” Mirkin agrees. “When we launched the site we knew it would be more than just a dating site, and I am proud to say that we are ecstatic that we can continue to make a difference in people’s lives in so many unexpected ways. Our acquisition of EquestrianMatch.com and partnership with Texas Equusearch will only increase our reach to affect people’s lives.”
EquestrianSingles.com was founded in 2001 and remains the number one dating site and online community for horse lovers. For members that are not single, EquestrianFriends.com shares in the sense of community through trail rides, events, chat rooms, and member get-togethers around the country.
Article provided by EquestrianSingles.com. For more information please visit
www.EquestrianSingles.com or contact info@EquestrianSingles.com.