Project Horseshoe Farm has welcomed its new class of fellows for the 2026-27 year. The eight fellows will spend the year serving in Marion and Uniontown.
Arionna Bell
Arionna Bell calls Lexington, South Carolina, home. Raised with a deep appreciation for faith, family and community, she learned early that meaningful relationships are at the heart of life. She is a proud graduate of Johns Hopkins University, where she earned a degree in molecular and cellular biology.
After four years in Baltimore, Arionna is excited to be back in the South, where peach cobbler, sweet tea and genuine hospitality make everywhere feel like home. Some of her favorite activities include trying new foods, watching stand-up comedy and spending time with loved ones.
Arionna’s personal mission is to make the people around her smile. She believes that strong neighbors build strong neighborhoods, which is why she is grateful to be part of Project Horseshoe Farm. During her year in Perry County, she looks forward to stepping outside her comfort zone, cultivating her curiosity and creating enduring connections.
After completing her fellowship, Arionna plans to attend medical school as she pursues her dream of becoming a neonatal surgeon. Welcome to Perry County, Arionna!
Molly Dillon
Molly comes to Perry County from Mountain View, California, in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area. A 2025 graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, she studied biology with a concentration in neuroscience, minored in anthropology with a focus on global health and the environment, and earned a certificate in French. If you speak French, Molly would love to practice with you so she doesn’t forget it!
She spent the past year living and working in Chicago as a medical assistant at a dermatology practice. Molly is currently applying to medical school, and she can’t wait to spend this year learning from and serving this community.
Outside of Project Horseshoe Farm, you can find her with her nose in a good book (mostly fiction, though she’ll read just about anything), working on a paint-by-number, or settling in for a board game night. She took up knitting while living in Chicago but is still relatively new to it, so send your favorite patterns her way!
This year, you’ll be able to catch Molly at the Marion-Perry County Library or getting her hands dirty in the community garden. She’s excited to build meaningful relationships and explore all that the South has to offer. Welcome to Perry County, Molly!
Eliana Jaffa
Eliana (pronounced eh-lee-AH-nuh, though she also goes by Ellie) joins us from Jacksonville, Florida (yes, she has some gators in her backyard), where she was born and raised.
A proud graduate of the University of Florida (Go Gators!), she studied biomedical engineering with a minor in international relations, a combination that becomes clear the more you get to know her.
A busy bee at heart, Eliana loves meeting new people and building relationships with those both near and far. She’s an avid fan of football and basketball but tries to keep up with just about any game in season. You’ll likely catch her getting her daily sunlight and staying active.
Currently an EMT, Eliana has her heart set on medical school and is considering a future in sports medicine or orthopedics. She’s also excited to get in front of a microphone as one of the voices of the Body-Love Radio Show, which airs every Wednesday at 8:30 a.m. on 94.3 FM and 1310 AM!
Easily identifiable by her curly hair, she’s always up for chatting about whatever big game happened the night before. Welcome to Perry County, Eliana!
Carrington Sample
Carrie, a native Virginian, comes to Perry County from Williamsburg, Virginia, where she graduated from William & Mary with majors in public health and psychology. She is especially interested in community health and loves to go to different communities and meet new people.
After this year, she hopes to pursue a master’s in public health with a concentration in community health, to help communities build a better foundation for health from within.
A lesser-known fact about Carrie is her interest in gardening. You can catch her helping out at Auburn’s Rural Studio farm in Newbern or managing Project Horseshoe Farm’s community garden!
In her free time, you might catch her reading fiction, with one of her favorite books being “The Little Prince,” or reminiscing about the amazing trails she hiked in South Korea. She has already enjoyed the trails around here, especially in Perry Lakes Park.
She also likes to dance and was a competitive collegiate ballroom dancer! A big reason she decided to join the fellowship was to meet new people, hear their stories and grow from what they can teach her. Welcome to Perry County, Carrie!
Ruby Moore
Ruby hails from Columbus, Ohio, after graduating from the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York (go ‘Jackets!). She majored in biology and minored in psychology, leaving school with interests in teaching, community health and nonprofit work, which she hopes to pursue after her year in Perry County.
Outside of the classroom, she was a collegiate volleyball player and is excited to share her skills with community members! A big reader, Ruby can often be found with a book in her hand and particularly enjoys the work of Neal Shusterman.
She also crochets and is slowly getting closer to finishing her first full blanket. Ruby’s creativity makes her the fellow everyone turns to for a fun new activity; she is the proud inventor of human foosball and cornhole-baseball. We’re excited to see what other amazing games she comes up with!
During her year here, Ruby is excited to meet new people, hear their stories and fully invest in and become a part of a new community. She is passionate about making a difference by interacting directly with and in communities, and has particularly enjoyed getting to know everyone during Project Horseshoe Farm’s Community Center Program and at Uniontown’s Adult Day Center. Welcome to Perry County, Ruby!
Elliott Ruegsegger
Elliott comes to Perry County from Norfork, Arkansas. He recently graduated from the University of Arkansas (Go Hogs!), where he majored in biology and minored in psychology.
During his time in school, Elliott developed a passion for neuroscience, serving as club president and attending the first Neuroscience and Philosophy Conference in St. Louis! He is currently applying to medical school, hoping to pursue an MD/Master of Public Health with a focus on patient-centered work.
In his spare time, Elliott loves to write poetry. He draws inspiration from Ted Kooser’s work and has written on a wide range of topics, including oatmeal, birds and first dates.
Elliott can often be found outdoors, either in our community garden or hiking a trail; he once survived a week in Big Bend National Park on just boiled eggs!
Elliott is lighthearted, curious and welcoming to all, making him a great friend to everyone he meets. He has a knack for seeing the best of any situation and is always ready to crack a good joke.
During his time here, Elliott is excited to meet new people and deepen his understanding of social connections through the lens of public health. Welcome to Perry County, Elliott!
Anna Mayer
Anna joins us from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, a bustling suburb on the far outskirts of Philadelphia. Anna decided that Pennsylvania wasn’t cold enough for her (ha), so she moved all the way up to Boston for four years of college at Northeastern University.
There, she majored in biology and political science with a minor in Spanish, with plans to pursue a career in medicine in the future. In her free time, Anna likes to write poetry, sing, and play soccer and pickleball.
While she was in college, Anna’s mom moved from Pennsylvania to rural Vermont. Through hearing about the challenges her mother was experiencing in this new area, Anna gained a new passion for addressing healthcare disparities in rural areas.
This brought her to Project Horseshoe Farm, where she is excited to meet, work with and learn from all the wonderful people here in Marion and Uniontown.
She has already had such a wonderful time playing Bananagrams and dominoes at Horseshoe Farm’s Community Center Program, making paper self-portraits at the Summer Youth Program, and learning about the rich history here in Perry County. Welcome to Perry County, Anna!
Yufan Peng
Yufan comes to us from the small town of Maywood, New Jersey. A recent graduate of Vanderbilt University (Anchor Down!), she double-majored in public health and English.
When she’s not studying for the MCAT, you’ll likely find her climbing at Crux Climbing in T-Town, dancing freely to any song, trying to perfect her mom’s recipes, or walking really long distances.
Fun fact: she recently completed the Tour du Mont Blanc hike and will want to tell you all about it. She also likes to drink tea, write poetry and hammock.
Yufan has her sights set on medical school with a focus on rural health, oncology or pediatrics, and she dreams of building a community biodynamic farm that unites clinical care and agriculture.
She is someone who loves people and their stories, and she hopes to contribute to the warm community of Perry County that has already welcomed her so deeply.
Find her in the community garden on Wednesday mornings from 8 to 11 a.m., where she’s excited to help it grow and to watch its reach expand throughout the community this year. Welcome to Perry County, Yufan!
