About Us
Descendants of MistyHistory of Misty of Chincoteague The Chincoteague Miniature Pony Farm |
Misty great grandson Rainy's Boy & his owner Rebecca Stevens with Matt & Amanda of Misty's Heaven (2007) Misty’s Heaven is made possible through collaborative teamwork by Matt DesJardins and Amanda Geci. Matt takes on the responsibility of getting information on the Misty family ponies, some of which he has first hand knowledge. Amanda is responsible for the website’s new layout as well as getting information, having been to Chincoteague and Assateague many summers for Pony Penning. Photography by both Matt and Amanda is found on Misty's Heaven. This page tells a little bit about them.
Matt with Misty's Desert Sun and Misty's Moonshine on the Allen farm (2007) Like most Chincoteague pony lovers, Matt read Misty of Chincoteague in grade school. Soon afterward, Matt discovered more books by Marguerite Henry, which led him to reading A Pictorial Life Story of Misty, which is probably his favorite work by the author. Matt loved the fact that Misty was a real pony, and had always dreamed of going to Chincoteague and meeting some of her offspring. 1996 marked the release of a special Breyer model set of some of Misty’s family. It included Misty’s granddaughter, Misty II, and two of her offspring, Black Mist and Twister. Being an avid Breyer collector, Matt soon acquired the set of models, having already owned the models of Misty, Stormy, and another Misty descendant, Misty’s Twilight. Eager to learn more about these models, Matt wrote to Breyer for more information, and they provided him with a fact sheet on the ponies, and contact information. Matt’s dream to visit Chincoteague materialized in the summer of 1998 on a family vacation. He and his family arrived on the island during the week of Pony Penning but were only able to stay a day. Matt went to see the Chincoteague Pony Farm where Misty’s family was bred and raised, but sadly the farm was closed, and there were only two ponies left on the farm. However, luck would have it that Misty II would be on the island with her new owners, the Allen family at Tom’s Cove campground. Matt met the famous granddaughter of Misty, as well as her daughter, Black Mist, and a new foal she had that year named Misty II’s Henry. Upon returning home from his vacation, Matt quickly wrote a letter to the Chincoteague Chamber of Commerce, wanting more information on Misty’s family. He realized that things had changed very much on the island, and with the old Pony Farm being closed, he was in need of information on the whereabouts of Misty’s family. The Chamber of Commerce forwarded his letter to Kendy Allen, the owner of Misty II and several other Misty family ponies. Starting in 1999, Matt and Kendy kept in correspondence with each other through email, and Kendy did her best on answering Matt’s numerous questions on the Misty line as well as informing him on new Misty family arrivals, such as the births of Misty’s RainDrop and Misty’s Desert Sun that year. Kendy also provided Matt with several photos of her Misty family ponies. Soon afterward, Matt began browsing the Internet in hopes of finding a website that provided some, if any, information on Misty’s family. Finding none, Matt decided that he would try and create one for himself, having obtained a great wealth of information already. With the help of a fellow friend, Karen Lloyd (who is the artist of the Misty’s Heaven logo), Matt slowly began work on the Misty family website. During the years of building and slowly adding information to the website, Matt came in contact with Amanda Geci, another avid Breyer collector, and much to his surprise, another avid fan of Misty and her descendants. Having been to the island several times for Pony Penning, Amanda was able to contribute loads of information on her experiences as well as several photos. When the website changed servers, Matt enlisted the help of a very enthusiastic Amanda to maintain the site since Karen had gone on to other ventures. 2006 was an unforgettable year for Matt. In his correspondence with Kendy, she asked him if he would be interested in coming down a summer to work at the Chincoteague Pony Centre that had been established in 2000. Matt already had several years experience in riding and caring for horses so he jumped at the chance, even if it was only for the two weeks he would be able to stay. In that short time frame, Matt became good friends with the Allen family as well as other members of the Pony Centre. He was able to ride and take care of Misty family ponies, and share his love with the animals to the island tourists. In 2007, Matt spent the entire summer at the Pony Centre, living the dream that had started when he was just in grade school. Matt plans to return to Chincoteague for summer 2008.
Amanda with Misty II's Henry on the Allen farm (2007) Amanda was given Misty of Chincoteague when she was eleven by a longtime family friend that had heard of the Pony Swim, soon after she read the rest of the Misty books and was hooked. She discovered that Misty was real when she found Dear Readers and Riders in the library. Amanda still vividly remembers her excitement at finding the pictures of the real Misty in that book and then showing it to her school friends. In 1995 Amanda talked her parents into making the trip to Chincoteague for Pony Penning. During that memorable trip she got to see the Beebe house before it burned, visit the Chincoteague Miniature Pony Farm the last year it was in open, and met Maureen Beebe. That first trip started Amanda’s love affair with the islands of Chincoteague and Assateague. The next year they returned for Pony Penning and were able to stay at Miss Molly’s Inn, where Marguerite Henry stayed when on Chincoteague. Amanda has since made regular trips to Chincoteague. She has been to Pony Penning a total of seven times; 1995, 1996, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, with plans for 2008. During her trips to Chincoteague she has made acquaintances of many people on Chincoteague, some connected to the Misty story, and has been able to photograph numerous Misty family. During a trip to Florida in 1997, Amanda got to meet Misty’s Twilight and her daughter Marguerite's Misty Morning. The Geci's had been driving around Ocala and they stumbled across Stolen Hours Farm with Twi grazing in a roadside pasture. In 2003, Amanda was able to visit with Twi again and Misty’s Moon Shadow, Twi's last foal. She also got to meet and talk Misty with Dr. Sandy Price. Amanda got her first model horse, Misty of course, on her first trip to Chincoteague. That was the start of her Misty collection as well as Amanda's current large model horse collection. Along with Misty and Misty family model horses she also collects Misty family books, postcards, artwork prints, and any other memorabilia connected to Misty. Frustrated by misinformation and a general lack of information on the real Misty, Amanda wrote up an article called “The History of Misty of Chincoteague” and posted it on her website. In the years that the article was on her website Amanda received many emails from Misty fans around the country and several from overseas. The Misty History was absorbed into Misty's Heaven when the site was moved. In January 2008 Amanda launched "The Colorful Chincoteague" an informational website on the coat colors of Chincoteague Ponies. While searching the internet one day for Misty information Amanda stumbled across Misty’s Heaven. Delighted to find someone else so interested in Misty, she quickly emailed Matt offering what information she had. Amanda shared with Misty’s Heaven the information and pictures she got on her Pony Penning trips, in turn striking up a friendship with Matt. After the untimely loss of the old site, Amanda offered her help in the rebuilding and maintenance of Misty’s Heaven. Looking for something to keep her busy while Matt was on Chincoteague during summer 2007, Amanda gave Misty’s Heaven a makeover resulting in the current design of the site and she continues to tweak the site’s look.
Amanda, Misty great great granddaughter Misty III, and Matt at the Chincoteague Pony Centre (2007) |
