JUNE 2012 THE RIDER /37 Horses For Heroes Now Offered At One Canadian Ranch
Photo captions Sarah and Robyn, David and Robyn By Kelly Bowers
Las Vegas-based Horses4Heroes, Inc. (H4H) in partnership with the Armed Forces Foundation (AFF) today announced plans to make it possible for combat Veterans, Wounded Warrior and active duty service person- nel and their families to ride a horse for free. The campaign, called Operation Free Ride, is an initiative to introduce the healing power of horses and the fun of horseback riding to these military heroes. “This is the program for families that have ever wanted to ride a horse or experience the special bond and friendship of horses,” said Patricia Driscoll, pres- ident and executive director of Armed Forces Founda- tion. “Horses certainly have proven their abilities to help heal the wounds of war and separation.”
“This program will open the wonderful world of horses to these men, women and their children who have sacrificed so much on our behalf. With thousands of troops return- ing home, programs like Operation Free Ride are important to PTSD suffer- ers, Wounded Warriors, caregivers and their fami- lies,” said Sydney Knott, president and executive director of Horses4Heroes, Inc.
Operation Free Ride is an unprecedented collabo- ration between breed asso- ciations and equestrian organizations, united for one important mission: to give returning combat vet- erans, Wounded Warriors and their families the opportunity to ride a horse for free. Launching on May 19, which is Armed Forces Day in the USA, Operation Free Ride will be an impor- tant opportunity for partici- pating equestrian facilities to show their support for the soldiers, veterans and their families and partici- pate in a nationwide com- munity service project. Horses4Heroes is reaching out to equestrian facilities throughout the country. In addition, the non-profit organization will use its own national network of kid and family friendly equestrian facilities from coast to coast to make the dream of a free horseback ride a reality. So far, 130 facilities in 38 states have agreed to participate. The Horses4Heroes Free Ride program is also being offered at one Cana- dian location, Triple R Ranch in Priceville, ON. Under the H4H umbrella, owner and instructor, Robyn Hewitt will be pro- viding the same services to our Canadian Service men and women, Police / Fire- men and other emergency service providers plus their families as well.
Robyn’s expertise
working with People with Special needs like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is truly outstanding as she draws from her own real life trauma experienced after her near death auto accident in 1991. This insight gives her the unique ability to understand first hand the needs of her stu- dents and to communicate effectively with them using a variety of techniques including sign language. These skills have devel- oped over the last six or seven years she has dedi- cated to helping people who may struggle with simple tasks but seem to thrive under her guidance. About fifteen people with various needs are taught by Robyn every week;Half of the adults also suffer from PTSD and there are also 13 children come to her for lessons, some who need extra attention.
Each participant is given one-on-one personal instruction not just in rid- ing horses, but in handling and learning that the horse is a real live feeling animal that needs love and protec- tion, just as her students do. Robyn’s method is cer- tainly one of a kind and her success of working this way is unequalled, as testi- fied to by the many case workers who are amazed week after week, thrilled at the progress of the partici- pants. Every one at Triple R Ranch is gearing up for their busiest time of year when they run a summer camp for challenged adults and youth as well.
For safety reasons Robyn does not allow any inexperienced person to be in the arena during her lessons. “It takes about a year to train someone who would be considered expe- rienced enough to be
placed in a position of trust.” says Robyn, “and some don’t make it.”she adds. “ if I was not so con- cerned about the safety of my friends and students, I could just put 5 or 6 on horses at the same time”, but saving time and money is not worth risking an accident. So she goes it alone, slowly but surely working with riders from 5 years to 70 years of age, one at a time. “You may look at a hundred horses before you find one that I would use in my program; Even then we train for every possible circum- stance. You cannot put a high enough value on safe- ty” - and it pays off when you see the big smiles on their faces.
Interested families should register at
www.operationfreeride.co m. Equestrian facilities that want to participate
should visit www.Opera-
tionfreeride.com to register their facility. Riding expe- riences may vary from facility to facility and fami- lies will need to abide by each facility’s rules. Pro-
gram is available to all ages, all riding levels and both English and western disciplines are offered. For more information, visit
www.operationfreeride.com
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