100 Horseman Strong Challenge Grant 2023 coming soon!

200 Horsemen Strong Challenge

Congratulations to our 2022 200 Horsemen Strong Grant Winners!

1st Place and $10,000 to Otra Mas
2nd Place and $5,000 to Boys & Girls Club of the South Coast Area
3rd Place and $3,000 to Surf and Turf Therapy


The San Juan Capistrano Equestrian Coalition is proud to announce our 2nd Annual 100 Horsemen Strong Challenge Grant now called the 200 Horsemen Strong Challenge Grant. Horses are the hidden treasure of San Juan Capistrano.  While many citizens are familiar with the Rancho Mission Viejo Rodeo and the Swallow’s Day Parade, this quiet but mighty industry brings over a $100 million dollars a year into our city.  The horses are the backbone of many mental health and physical rehabilitation programs, they inspire our artists, are a living depiction of our heritage and provide our youth with organized activities such as lessons, summer camps and shows..  To illustrate how impactful our horses are to our community, the SJCEC has come up with a two part challenge.

We have increased the challenge of 2021’s 100 horsemen and women to 200 horsemen & women for 2022. The donation is $100 (or increments of a hundred dollars). The donation is tax deductible and is restricted to supporting a grant. Each donation of $100 will garner one vote for the donor to help select the winner of the grant. Donors will receive a link via email to watch the video submissions from the top 5 applications and cast their votes. On December 3rd the grant winner will be announced. 

Individuals, groups or organizations are encouraged to submit a proposal on how they would use the grant.  Interested parties will submit a proposal by November 8, 2022 via the form below. The grant request should illustrate a program that positively affects our San Juan based community with the horse being an integral part of the program. The proposal should include the impact on the local community, key measurements and a timeline. Grant applications can be found on the San Juan Capistrano Equestrian Coalition website under “200 Horsemen Strong Challenge”. Terms &  Conditions of the challenge can also be found on the website.

On November 9, 2022 5 top finalists will be chosen. The top 5 finalists will then be asked to submit a 3 minute video of their proposal - from the 5 videos a winner will be selected by the 200 horseman donors and granted the Grand Prize of $10,000, 2nd place of $5,000, 3rd place of $3,000, 4th and 5th place will also be granted  $1,000 each.

The SJCEC is excited to be able to share this challenge! We believe that these grants will continue  to enhance our equestrian community and continue to foster the love we all have for these amazing animals.