Phyllis Dunmire

Little Bit Supporter

For Phyllis Dunmire, Little Bit has always been “family.” The introduction to her family began with her husband, Mike. Mike and Phyllis were married in 1994. She had taught Special Education in Florida 30 years previous to their marriage. Phyllis recalled that when they were married, Mike told her, “I’m involved with this organization called Little Bit, and I think you would be a perfect fit because you have special ed experience, and you love horses, and you get along with people very well.”

Phyllis started volunteering at Little Bit in 1995 when it was just a tiny organization. She remembers instructor Tracy McConnachie. When you met Tracy, you automatically wanted to sign up! “So, I think I signed up to volunteer four days a week and I volunteered for 15 years in the arena,” said Phyllis. “The student I had the longest was Kurt Swedberg. We held birthday parties for him and his dad, Carl, was always at Little Bit. I still go out to lunch with them. I mean, they are family! Through Kurt and other riders, I just fell in love with Little Bit!”

“I remember one day, one of the staff members asked me to go bring in the white horse,” Phyllis reminisced, “and so I went out and there were several white horses. I just chose one and brought it in and tied it up. The horse started rearing and bucking. This was my second time volunteering at Little Bit. That staff member walked by and said, ‘That horse should never be tied up.’ What an introduction to Little Bit!”

When she first started volunteering, she didn’t think that she was going to be able to continue because she saw a young rider coming up in a wheelchair and the horse turned around and nickered. “I just really broke down in tears, and I thought, you know, maybe I’m not cut out for this job. You know it didn’t just happen once! It leaves such an impact on you,” said Phyllis. “I didn’t want anyone to see me all blotchy and teary-eyed, but I just love Little Bit, and it just feels so good to give back.”

Phyllis is a relative newcomer to riding horses. She started when she was 60. After her volunteer time at Little Bit, Mike bought Phyllis her first Arabian. She always wanted to ride, but competing on a horse is a whole different story. “When we have the Pat Flynn Memorial Horse Show at Little Bit, the kids go into the arena with such confidence, like they’ve done that all their lives and know they are going to be good! I wish I had that kind of confidence when I go into the arena,” said Phyllis.

“Little Bit was Mike’s passion, too,” said Phyllis. “He worked for a bank in Tacoma and their executive director said that he wanted all the executives to be involved in charity work. At the time, he lived on the Woodinville-Duvall Road, so he found the charity that was closest to him geographically and it was Little Bit. He couldn’t do enough for Little Bit. From day one back in the early 1980s, Mike was “in” 100 percent. And he never let go. He was always the first to volunteer for anything that Little Bit needed, served on the Board, and was a financial advisor. I was his eyes and ears on the ground.”

Phyllis and Mike were a match made in heaven. Phyllis had a friend who knew Mike and introduced her. They spoke on the phone for six months before meeting in person. Mike had to travel to New York on business and suggested that he extend his trip to Miami to meet Phyllis. She was sold on him right away! After Mike’s passing in 2014, Phyllis carried their family torch as a Little Bit supporter and continues to find Little Bit pulling on her heart strings. She hopes that in the next 50 years Little Bit continues to be financially stable, will be able to serve as many individuals as possible, and will continue to feel like her home away from home.

Find more 50th anniversary stories HERE.