A memorial service will be held on Friday, July 1, in Charlottesville for local horseman Felix Jacob Nuesch, who died peacefully on June 6, 2016, at his home in Free Union. He was 84.

An active member in the horse community, Nuesch was instrumental in developing the Virginia Horse Center and was on the board for many years.  He was inducted into the center’s Hall of Fame as well as the Virginia Horse Show Association Hall of Fame and was named Horseman of the Year by the Virginia Horse Council.

Nuesch was born and raised in Balgach, Switzerland. As a young man he was a member of the Swiss Calvary and he competed in military events and in combined training events.

After coming to the United States in the 1950s, he managed Canaan Farm in Esmont. He later managed several other farms such as Lewisfield and Ingleside in Charlottesville while he started his own business at his home, Rehberg Farm, in Free Union. At Rehberg Farm he trained race horses, hunters and jumpers  and developed fox hunter prospects as a member of the Farmington Hunt. In 1984, he started Braeburn Thoroughbred Training Center in Crozet, Virginia, where he and his family broke and trained horses for owners such as Lael Stable, Christiana Stable, Morven Stud, Al Fried, Jr., Joanne Nielsen, and Mr. and Mrs. Orme Wilson. His family continues to run the farm where his son, Pat, is the head trainer.

Memorial donations may be made to the Virginia Horse Center Foundation in Lexington or the Earlysville Volunteer Fire Department.

Related:

• Braeburn Farm: Crozet’s Pride at the Race Track