Mandy is a founding Board Member, Secretary, and Treasurer of the John William Pope Foundation. Today, she is Vice Chairman of the Pope Foundation. She attended North Carolina State University and received a bachelor’s degree from Purdue University in Business Administration.
Mandy also serves as Vice Chairman on the Board of Directors for Variety Wholesalers Inc.
From an early age, it was apparent that Mandy would pursue a lifelong love of horses. She bought her first horse, Blue Whisper, as a high-school student at St. Mary’s School in Raleigh. In 1980, her ambition of breeding, selling, training, and racing horses led her to Ocala, Florida, recognized as the center-of-the-universe for enthusiasts of thoroughbred horses.
Around the same time, she purchased her first mare — Morning Mirage. Since then, Mandy has pursued her passion for horses in the balmy climate of the Sunshine State. She has produced winning racehorses, including Sam P., a Kentucky Derby contender. She is the breeder of the 2010 Horse-of-the-Year contender Tizway, who now stands at stud at Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, KY.