Iseult Broglio Is Proud Of Her Many Years Of Service To The Wellington Community
Iseult Broglio was born in Dublin, Ireland, but it was her love of horses that brought her to America.
My sister and her husband had an equestrian training center in Southern Pines, N.C., and I came over in 1971 to help out,” Broglio recalled.
She was working, happy and hardly homesick at all — and that’s when fate stepped in. Lee Broglio, a trainer of Standardbred horses, turned Iseult’s head and she never looked back. The pair were married — and stayed that way until Lee’s death in 2015 at age 90.
“Lee needed warmer weather, so, in about 1979, we moved to Wellington,” Broglio said.
Dublin’s loss was Wellington’s gain. Shortly after arriving, Broglio got involved with the Gold Coast Dressage Association, where she was approached by a fellow member who asked if she knew anyone who could be able to put on a dressage show to raise money for disabled children.
She didn’t think twice.
“I got involved practically immediately with the Vinceremos Therapeutic Riding Center,” Broglio recalled. “That was way back when it was on Lake Worth Road.”
Although the dressage group itself was not able to help out, two other individuals from Gold Coast answered Broglio’s request for assistance, enabling her to put the event together within the required two-month timeframe.
“That first dressage show, I had 36 rides for the whole day,” Broglio remembered. “I gave Vinceremos a check for whatever it was, and it escalated from then on.”
The first indication that things might be heating up occurred the week after the show. Broglio received a call from Vinceremos founder Ruth Menor asking her to serve on the young nonprofit’s board. Broglio agreed, and the rest is philanthropic history.
For 13 years, under Broglio’s direction, the Vinceremos dressage fundraiser was held at the Winter Equestrian Festival showgrounds.
“At one stage, I had three dressage rings going all day — 150 rides, sometimes in three arenas,” she said.
Broglio credits some of that success to the timing of her event, early in the season. “The riders wanted to get into the arena before the big show started, to get used to the venue,” she explained. “Of course, my dressage show was a schooling show, not an A-rated show. Anybody with any kind of a horse could ride. That wasn’t my concern. My concern was making money for Vinceremos.”
And make money she did. Through the years, the Broglio family raised large amounts of funding for Vinceremos. She served on the board until 2011. Her husband did, too. He served as president for eight years.
As a board member, she wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty.
“I did some volunteer work at the barn, working with the kids, and I helped with Vinceremos’ main auction every January,” Broglio said. “I got people to come, got auction items donated, and on the day of the event, decorated tables and got things ready — whatever they needed me to do.”
Today, thanks to its many successful fundraisers and widespread community support, Vinceremos is on its own Loxahatchee Groves property with a stable full of horses and dedicated volunteers of all ages. Horse shows and auction fundraisers continue annually, and things look a lot brighter for every child, and now many adults, whose needs are helped by spending quality time atop a gentle horse.
But Broglio is not one to rest on her laurels. In addition to her work with Vinceremos, she also volunteered for several years at Big Dog Ranch Rescue, spending a couple of days a week walking and interacting with the dogs, as well as cleaning up after them. She spent another two years with the Kids Cancer Foundation in Royal Palm Beach. She helped organize November golf tournaments, finding players and silent auction items and looking after healthy siblings so parents could be with sick children during treatments.
Why does she do it?
“I was very lucky in life,” she said. “I had a great marriage and one son, and I just thought I should be trying to give back. Vinceremos came along, and I really, really enjoyed it. Wellington is a great community, and I wanted to give back to the community. Plus, Vinceremos does an absolutely incredible job for these children.”
Broglio’s son Frank, his wife Jeni and their two children — Emily and Lily — live with Iseult in a happy family conglomeration worthy of Dublin.
“Lee and I were married 40 years. I trained horses with him and went to sales with him,” Broglio said. “And my mother said it wouldn’t last! After all, I was Lee’s third wife. But the third time’s the charm.”
