Of all the things Judy Wroda hoped to accomplish from her fairly recent foray into amateur photography, having one of her images appear in an international publication may have exceeded them all.

The Ashville resident recently found that a photograph she had taken at Chautauqua Institution a few years prior has been included as a full-page spread within the December 2016-January 2017 issue of “Country” magazine.

Founded in 1987, “Country” magazine celebrates an insider’s view of rural North America — including the United States and Canada — as seen through the stories, and cameras, of more than three million readers. Its content reflects rural lifestyle with relaxed, conversational writing and top-quality photography.

According to Wroda, who took up photography when she moved to Ashville from Kansas six years ago, the photo that was published in “Country” was taken during one of the weekend sleigh rides hosted at Chautauqua Institution every February. She said the publication’s decision to use her work came as a pleasant surprise.

“I wasn’t expecting this because I had sent the photo in, along with a batch of others I had taken, a few years ago and I didn’t hear anything back,” Wroda said. “I had started feeling like maybe they weren’t good enough, but they sent me an email a couple months ago saying they would consider running it.

“I knew that it was a pretty picture as soon as I took it,” she added. “I actually made a Christmas card out of it a couple years ago. I never would have dreamed that the people at ‘Country’ would be interested in it.”

Wroda said the editors at “Country” asked for further information; including the names of the horses pulling the sleigh, Mark and Sam. She said she ultimately found out from a friend that the photo was included in this month’s issue when she received her congratulations.

“I couldn’t believe it when I saw it; it took my breath away,” she said. “It was also special because I was at the point where I had been fighting cancer for a while and I just needed something good to happen.”

Though she had previously taken a reprieve from her photography in order to care for her companion, Bob Gleason, who is also battling cancer, Wroda said she intends to continue in an even more expanded capacity. For now, she said she thankful for the opportunity to photograph Chautauqua County’s varied scenic elements.

“Photography has been a kind of therapy for me,” she said. “It’s been healing to be able to go out and find all the beauty out there. This county has the ability to really restore a person’s soul if they can just take the time to look around.”