Gisela Lenz is the proud owner of Retirement Homes on all of Horse Reality’s six continents, where she provides unwanted horses with everything they need for the rest of their lives. Any horse that gets sent her way will be taken in, free of charge! Be careful, once you send a horse her way, you cannot get them back. Gisela will provide them with a loving home for the rest of their lives.
| Gisela Lenz | |
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| Occupation | Retirement Home Owner |
| Age | Around 65 years |
| Height | 180cm (5’11”) |
| Family Background | Lives in Germany with her elderly father |
| Link | Here |
¶ Background
Gisela grew up in the heart of Cologne as the daughter of a successful salesman and his equally hard-working wife. The youngest of three children, her summers were spent exploring the countryside near the village where her mother grew up. She enjoyed lazy summer days catching frogs in a small brook behind her uncle's house, birdwatching and hunting for butterflies and ladybugs while admiring a small pasture of horses on a neighbouring farm.
Her parents instilled in her the belief that hard work and dedication would lead to prosperity, not only financially, but emotionally as well. Initially, the bright and curious Gisela hoped to pursue a degree as a veterinary - she was certainly intelligent enough and had a boundless empathy that she knew would serve her well in the field. Her plans changed, however, when she enrolled in her first year of university and took an introductory course in business. Despite her initial misgivings on the subject, Gisela found that not only did she enjoy the class, she also had a real talent for immediately understanding the concepts. Her professor too, was impressed, and after some convincing, long conversations with her parents and a good deal of soul-searching, Gisela put her veterinary ambitions on the back burner and dove head-first into the world of business.
Following her education, she found work at a multinational firm and rose through the ranks, from an associate to a project manager, to department head, to junior vice president, and up, and up, and up. She found professional success and financial security beyond anything she had ever expected, and by the time her retirement was approaching, she'd all but forgotten her 'childish' dream of working with animals for a living. It wasn't until her mother died quite suddenly that Gisela found herself questioning the life she had spent 35 years building for herself. Her mother's last request was to be buried in the family cemetery plot in the village of her birth. If asked today, Gisela would be unable to say if it was the grief of losing her mother or the memories of her happy childhood at this place that awakened the long-dormant feelings of purpose inside her. Regardless, the visit to her mother's hometown had shaken something loose inside her. She was tired, truly exhausted. She had worked half her life for a company that likely wouldn't miss her the moment she left. And despite giving her time, energy, and intelligence to this workplace, she felt utterly unfulfilled. She had a dream, and she had given it up in pursuit of something that she never cared for at all.
With a new sense of resolve, Gisela submitted her retirement request and went forward with a revised plan of how to follow her parents' advice. Near the village where her mother was born, she purchased a plot of land and established her first equine retirement home. She understood how it felt to have worked hard in life, and how important it was to find a place of serenity and solace after years of service. Using her business savvy she acquired from her life in the cut-throat world of multinational companies, she founded branches of the retirement home overseas and eventually expanded her firm to over six continents. She keeps the retirement company running like a well-oiled machine while still allowing herself the time to care for the animals who need her the most. With her elderly father at her side, the 65-year-old Gisela has finally found the peace and sense of purpose she was searching for all of her life.
¶ Changelog
- Gisela's background story was chosen through a player writing contest on November 12th 2020[1][2]
¶ References
- https://v2.horsereality.com/news/29/closedjudging-writing-contest-whats-your-story-vol-i
- https://v2.horsereality.com/news/38/results-writing-contest-whats-your-story-vol-i