Kenneth L. Cannon Indoor Riding Arena Opening

Kenneth L. Cannon Family

The Kenneth L. Cannon Equestrian Center officially opened its doors on Thursday, March 19, during the 2015 SUU Founders Celebration.

The 22,900-square-foot riding arena, located at the Valley Farm, will facilitate and support the growth of the SUU equine studies and serve an estimated 600 student each year.

Kenneth Lynn Cannon (1913-2001), a professor by profession but a farmer by heart, delivered newspapers as a boy with his pony Maud and raced her against the streetcars in Salt Lake City. As a dairy farmer, he depended on a horse, and as a father of young children, he enjoyed many years riding with this children and, later, on his own.

Ken taught Seminary in Cedar City and saved for graduate school at BYU and, later, earned a doctorage from Iowa State. Hi wife, Ruth Ipson Cannon, and his parents-in-law, Parley Ipson and Sarah Church Ipson, all of Panguitch, attended what is now Southern Utah University.

He didn't have access to covered riding facilities and always looked forward to each spring when he could once again ride. This arena is named in his honor by his daughter, Connie Cannon Holbrook, to enable others to do what he would have liked doing: riding regardless of the weather.

SUU is grateful to the many generous donors to this facility; Connie C. Holbrook, Garth & Jerri Frehner, SUU Valley Farm, Energy Solutions, Shannon Family Foundation, and Edward & Shirley Stokes.

Other donors include: Robin Archibald, DeLynn Barton, Steve & Angela Brown, Cameron & Kim Brooks,  Brian & Sharon Brown, Kirt Bussio, Garret & Staci Carson, Nica Clark, Wendy K. Coulter, Erin K. Coulter, Dan Dail, Dr. Robert & Patricia Eves, Kumen Gardner Family, Lionel & Artis Grady, Mary Gillins, Betsy Hatfield, Brent Hunter, Wade Kleinman, Ken & Paula Lambeth, Cory & Danielle Manis, Johnny & Shemree Naegele, Ty & Teresa Redd, Earl & Barbara Rodriguez, Elise Scofield, Camaree Staheli, State Bank of Southern Utah, Kim Ward, Dean & Wendy Winward, Cleo Wood Family, and Lee & Linda Wood.

Lee G. Wood
Associate Professor of Agriculture

Dean L. Winward
Associate Professor Agriculture

Ken Schmidt, SUU Senior
Agriculture Science & Industry, B.I.S. and Equine Studies A.A.S.

Left to right: Robert L. Eves, Dean of the Walter Maxwell Gibson
College of Science & Engineering; Connie C. Holbrook,
Ruth Ipson Cannon; Scott L Wyatt, President of Southern Utah University

Left to right: Dean Robert Eves, Garth Frehner,
Jerri Frehner, President Scott L Wyatt

Kenneth L. Cannon Indoor Riding Arena