JEFFERSON TWP — Angie Bastian Dannelley always loved horses.

Her dream was to have her own farm and look out her home's picture window at her horses.

Angie died of cancer Sept. 16, but a group of friends and family are making her dream come true.

Called Angie's Warriors, the group, comprised of high school and college friends and others whose lives have been touched by Angie, formed to raise money to help pay the medical bills associated with her illness.

But, group members soon decided to tackle another project and make Angie's dream a reality.

“She was just glad it was going to happen, that she made it happen for Abel and Hunter,” said Beth Bastian, Angie's mother.

Abel is Angie's husband and Hunter is their 6-year-old son.

The Dannelley family purchased the house and farm on Blackberry Hill Lane between Butler and Saxonburg in July. The only thing missing was a barn for the horses.

Volunteers put together a spaghetti dinner Sept. 18 with proceeds specifically directed toward construction of a barn, said Courtney Shipley, a friend of Angie and one of the organizers.

“We raised quite a bit of money,” she said. “The community is definitely pitching in. It's been pretty amazing.”

Shipley said in addition to money, members of the community have donated stalls, paint and concrete, and builders have pledged their time for the construction.

Sarah Susa said Angie knew just how she wanted the barn to look.

“What is so wonderful is that Angie knew it was going to happen and that the people she loved most would get to live out that dream for her,” Susa said.

Susa, of Natrona Heights, met Angie through Flying Changes Equine Rescue, which Susa owns. The pair bonded over their love of horses, and Angie was a big part of the rescue and adoption efforts at Susa's facility.

Bastian said she is amazed at the community outpouring and said it is “mind-blowing” how that support continues a month after Angie's death.

Lisa Knappenberger's service learning class at Knoch High School, where Angie is a 1990 graduate, put together a benefit Oct. 12.

The event, Do It for Dannelley, offered yoga, zumba and cardio classes as well as concessions and baby-sitting.

“One of the most amazing parts of this is how Angie, even in death, pulled so many people together for a common goal,” Susa said.

Although Angie boarded the horses at another farm, the horses were brought to the Dannelley farm and Angie was able to see the horses on her farm before she died.

“She was able to lean out the window from her hospital bed and pat the horses,” Shipley said.

The animals are in a temporary shelter now, but Bastian said construction on the barn will need to be finished before the weather turns cold.

She is looking forward to seeing her daughter's dream realized.

“I'll be there,” she said.