Have You Met?

Rick Blomquist As a husband, father, polo player, and CEO of Farnam Companies, Inc., Rick Blomquist knows a lot about teamwork. The skills he uses for these aspects of his life, athleticism, strategic thinking, and teamwork, he also applies to his work with nonprofits. A Scottsdale resident, Rick Blomquist, is a local success story. He loves horses, and anyone who rides or owns horses knows about his company. Farnam Companies, Inc. is a leading national animal health care company with a major horse division, as well as strong and growing pet and veterinary divisions. Farnam is the largest horse products marketing company in the U.S., with its corporate headquarters in Phoenix. In a recent interview Rick revealed what he thought could be learned from horses. “I believe they can teach us a great deal about leadership, communication and negotiation. If they respect and trust the rider, and the rider reciprocates and invests the time in the relationship, it’s amazing what can be accomplished. This is something we can certainly transfer as a learning experience to our daily lives and relationships with our families, friends and those we work with daily.” Rick’s business life, personal lifestyle, community involvement and hobbies all revolve around the horse world. His love of horses started early. He confided “I’ve always enjoyed being around horses, but my involvement intensified a little over 20 years ago when I was given the opportunity to blend my work with my love for the horse when I joined Farnam.” There is a unique working environment at Farnam. Many employees are equestrians who ride and compete in many different disciplines, from Polo, to Western, Hunter/Jumper, Dressage, Trail Riding and more. Farnam employees are animal lovers and many have pets as well as horses—it’s not unusual to stop by an office to find a Pomeranian sitting behind a desk or a puppy in training wandering around an enclosed area. With the love for animals that abounds at Farnam, it’s easy to understand their community involvement includes support of the Arizona Humane Society, the FACC (Friends of Maricopa Animal Care & Control), and horse rescue groups in the Valley. Farnam also donates horse products and runs national contests to benefit horse nonprofits. The company also supports other companion animal, equestrian and youth development events and projects. They donate products to local and national equine nonprofit organizations, and serve as sponsors to various horse show organizations around the country. Rick Blomquist is also proud to say, “I am an active member of the Scottsdale Mounted Sheriffs Posse. The Posse is a group of experienced horsemen who help with the Sheriff’s search and rescue missions. We ride in to terrain that is accessible on horseback, but not by vehicle or helicopter, to help find missing or lost persons. In his personal life, Rick is married to Becky, and they have three children. He and his family enjoy going on trail rides on the seven horses they own. Rick described his love affair with polo, “There are many things to enjoy about polo, but to pick a couple, I would say that the team work between the horse and rider as well as between players, while playing a fast and ever-changing game is a real thrill. Horsemanship is very important to success in the game. I’ve been playing polo with the North Scottsdale Polo Club for about fifteen years. We have a great group of women and men that play the game for recreation and fun. The level of play is typically “medium to low goal” but we do occasionally turn up the speed a bit for exhibition games.” The tag line of Farnam, Inc., reads: “We Make Life Better for Animals and Their People.” Rick agrees, “Farnam has delivered beneficial, quality products for many years, to several generations of consumers. We work hard to maintain the trust we have built in our brands over the years. We don’t believe we are just providing products; we provide education and solutions and strive to be as complete in this endeavor as possible.” And Rick Blomquist, with his involvement in nonprofits and the community, is making life better for the people of Maricopa county.