Volunteers at Therapeutic Horsemanship Find Rewards Working with Kids, Horses

When Sandy Rafferty, Laura Carpenter Baldwin and Susie Duesinger started in 1975, they were operating out of a friend's barn and using borrowed horses. They believed, as their website says, "in the benefit of equine-assisted therapy for children with disabilities." 

That belief has stayed strong over the last 36 years as Therapeutic Horsemanship has grown.

The nonprofit now has its own facility, located on 90 acres off Highway Z in Wentzville, with indoor and outdoor arenas, stabling, pastures, a therapy room, a training room and offices—and their own herd of 24 therapy horses.

One of the few things that hasn't changed is the importance of volunteers to the TH program.

"We find that our volunteers get as much therapy out of this as our riders do—it's just totally different," said Volunteer Coordinator Kathy Castellitto.

Therapeutic Horsemanship needs volunteers in a number of areas:

• Sidewalkers assist with rider safety by walking beside the horse during each lesson. Sidewalkers learn various "holds" during training. They may also assist with lessons and barn duties as needed.
• Experienced sidewalkers can become leaders, who lead horses in lessons after learning the techniques and horse management duties necessary. Leaders may be asked to be sidewalkers or take on other barn duties.
• Horse handlers have learned the techniques involved with taking horses in and out of stalls and pastures, grooming them and tacking and untacking them. They may also take on general stable duties and horse care, and can serve as leaders and sidewalkers.
• Office and special event volunteers assist with filing, data entry, copying, and special event activities, such as the recent event. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Barn/grounds helpers assist with maintaining the barn and grounds, as well as cleaning stalls and helping with mowing, gardening, weed trimming, or other jobs.

Therapeutic Horsemanship offers two basic programs, Sports Riding and Hippotherapy. Sports riding uses Certified Riding Instructors to teach students how to ride a horse. Several riders may be in a class together, and assistance depends upon the rider: Some may be able to ride on their own, while others may need a leader and sidewalkers.

Carriage driving is offered as an option to those who are for any reason unable to ride, but can benefit from interaction with horses.

"Therapeutic Driving enables students to build balance, upper body and trunk strength, and response to more subtle movements from a more stable base of support," the TH website states.

Hippotherapy is one-on-one therapy. The horses are a moving, breathing tool for occupational, physical and speech therapists. They work with students to increase their balance and learn to control their movements. Instead of saddles, pads and a surcingle are used in order to let the rider more easily feel the movement of the horse.

Patch Helps Out

Give 5 is a Patch-wide (meaning across the nearly thousand Patch sites across the country) initiative that gets Patch employees out into their communities learning about volunteer opportunities and helping out.

On Sept. 14, Wentzville Patch editor Maggie Rotermund and I offered our service to Therapeutic Horsemanship of Wentzville. As a long-time horse owner and horse lover, I was familiar with the organization and had always wanted to help; Maggie, good sport that she is, also offered her assistance.

The time we spent at TH opened our eyes to the amazing work that is done there, and made us appreciate the fact that we have such a facility right here in the St. Louis area.

After a tour of the facility and viewing a video about TH, we received our sidewalker training from Castellitto. She stradded a barrel and taught us the various holds that would help us safely support a rider without hampering their ability to utilize the horse's movement.

Don't let the term "sidewalker" make you think that the job is simply walking alongside a horse. Sidewalkers have to match their stride to the pace of the horse, including when the horse trots. They may need to reach to support riders who are sitting on a horse five feet above the ground, and maintain that position. It can be a workout for anyone not used to it.

I helped with a sports riding lesson and a hippotherapy session. Both times, I was amazed to see the smiles that broke out on the riders' faces, and the effort they put into their time on horseback. The enthusiasm of the volunteers is contagious; everyone was positive and encouraging.

Add that together with the nickers of welcome, the scent of hay and leather and warm horses, and you couldn't ask for a better way to give your time. Castellitto was right—the volunteers get a kind of therapy, too.