KINGSTON — When well-known horse trainer and farrier Bill Mason suffered a massive heart attack Dec. 9, 2006, his days of schooling nearly came to an end. After surviving bypass surgery Feb. 13, he now faces a long road to recovery full of horses just as his entire life has been.

This time around, the four-legged friends will be doing more than following Mason’s lead, they will be helping raise money to offset his medical bills.

“This is unlike an office situation,” said his wife, Geri Mason. “When he was in the hospital, we didn’t have any paid leave to count on. This is a really amazing thing everyone is doing.”

Deann Anunson has taken the reins to organize a fund-raising horse show to benefit Mason. Anunson said Mason truly changed her life when she met him and began horseback riding.

“Bill has been around for a long time, everyone knows him,” she said. “As soon as I found out what happened, I started thinking about what I could do for him. Bill built my foundation for working with horses.”

Six barns will compete at the show, and independent riders have agreed to attend as well. Anunson’s sister, Danielle Branes — who boards her horse, Mooney, at Mason’s farm — will be running a silent auction and a 50/50 raffle, where half the money from ticket sales will assist Mason and the other half goes to whoever wins the drawing.

“The biggest thing is this has restored my faith in the community,” Branes said. “A lot of people think that the horse community can be kind of snobby and competitive with each other. But everyone has come together to help out Bill, and that’s really inspiring.”

The event will be held at Sandamar Farm on Gunderson Road and promises to be a relaxed schooling show, which is just what Mason enjoys, Branes said. English and Western classes will be available to riders and their trusty steeds.

Anunson said they wanted to keep the gathering casual, allowing friends to spend time together and with their horses.

The goal, she said, is to raise enough money to help Mason with his medical bills for the next month or so. But organizers are hoping to bring in as much as possible and allow Mason to recover as best as possible before getting back in the saddle.

In the meantime, he is taking slow walks to build up his strength and stamina and visits the horses boarded on his farm regularly.

“I’ve been working with horses since I was a kid,” Mason said. “All of this was really unexpected. I was really healthy and active till it happened. I guess its unexpected for anyone… I’m just overwhelmed what these guys are doing for me.”