Kelsey Karanges had the highest score at the Careity Celebrity Cutting.The 21st annual Careity Celebrity Cutting brought together cutting fans and celebrities for a good cause – raising money to support cancer patients in the Fort Worth area. Fourteen celebrity cutters competed, and they were divided into seven teams with the highest combined team score winning the event on Friday, Dec. 4 at the Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum.
Kelsey Karanges began the night with a run that left the crowd cheering, and the judges rewarded the effort with a 220, the highest score of the night. Karanges is a student at Southern Methodist University, where she competes on the equestrian team in horsemanship and reining. Karanges is no stranger to the cutting pen. In 2010, she earned an American Quarter Horse Association World Championship in Youth Cutting.
Karanges’ partner for the night, Malone, marked a 203, which gave the team a 423 and the victory. Malone is a radio personality at 95.9 The Ranch in Fort Worth. The 2015 Careity Celebrity Cutting was Malone’s second time to compete in the charity event.
During her arena interview with National Cutting Horse Association Hall of Fame Rider Lindy Burch, who served as the event’s color commentator, Malone thanked cutting horse “Tank” for “staying under me” during their two-and-a-half minute run.
To get into the zone and prepare for the event, Malone admitted to taking her brother’s advice and listened to “Eye of the Tiger” on her drive to the Will Rogers Coliseum Friday afternoon, and she said a shot of whiskey helped to calm her nerves. She credited her cutting coach, Bryan Jackson, for preparing her for the competition.
Careity beneficiary and cancer survivor Amanda Stevens and Dan Nevins, a combat veteran who lost both his legs while serving in Iraq, competed in the event and received the loudest reception from the crowd.
Following the cutting competition, an auction and benefit concert took place to raise additional funds for the Careity Foundation. The non-profit organization provides mammograms to uninsured and underinsured women and also provides on-site care and counseling for cancer patients in Tarrant, Parker and Johnson counties in the Fort Worth area. The non-profit organization is dedicated to providing oncology services to economically challenged cancer patients, and the group also supports a pediatric care program that works to provide relief to children with life threatening illnesses at Cook Children’s Hospital in Fort Worth. Learn more about Careity’s programs at www.careity.org.
