The University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) Batson Children’s Hospital has declined to be a beneficiary of a high-profile Tennessee Walking Horse show to remove itself from the ongoing controversy surrounding soring.

In February, some Tennessee Walking Horse advocates backed a petition on Change.org asking the UMMC and the Batson Children’s Hospital to dissociate itself from the Mississippi Charity Horse Show, which supports children’s charities in that state.

Marc Rolph, UMMC associate director of public affairs, said the children’s hospital had been affiliated with the horse show for almost a decade. Robert Taylor, president of the Mississippi Charity Horse Show, said the event has contributed about $250,000 to the children’s hospital over the years.

On March 4, the UMMC administration issued a written statement declining further donations drawn from the show’s proceeds