Janet Hamilburg Churchill '53 began show jumping in high school and later learned “the finer points of forward riding” from instructors Harriet Rogers and Clayton Bailey at Sweet Briar. In 1952, Churchill was named Master of Foxhounds of the Sweet Briar Hunt, and in 1953 she was awarded the Sweet Briar Blazer, a prize given to the top athlete by Sweet Briar’s athletic association. Photos of her are featured in Captain Vladimir Littauer’s 1956 book, “Schooling Your Horse.” In 1955, she was appointed master of the Groton Hunt Club in Massachusetts, making her one of just two women in the U.S. to hold that post at the time. A national judge with a No. 1 rating, she was head of the riding division for Girls and Women’s Sports of the National Education Association and directed the New England Center in Groton, Mass. Churchill later became a pilot and authored several articles and books, including the award-winning “From Delaware to Everywhere.” In 2000, she was inducted into the Delaware Aviation Hall of Fame.
