The therapeutic riding program, Horses of Hope (HOH), located in Baxter Springs, Kansas and Buffalo, Missouri had a great year with two of their riders winning several AQHA Year End High Point Awards. Twenty-three year-old Forrest Terry and his equine partner, Kahuna Lady (Lady), were the Equestrian with Disabilities (EWD) Showmanship at Halter winners and Jessie Naaykens and Chip Chocoholic (Chip) were the year end high point winners in the EWD Hunt Seat Equitation and Western Horsemanship. Forrest and Chip were also EWD year end winners in the Trail.
Forrest was diagnosed at birth with Cornelia de Lange Syndrome (CdLS), which is a rare genetic disorder that causes a range of physical, cognitive and medical challenges. Some of the characteristics of the syndrome is small stature and mental delays.
“Everyone loves Forrest because he is so cute and little, but he walks like he is John Wayne with a lot of confidence and swagger,” his mom, Jane Anne Porter, says laughing. “He loves horses because he can be in charge, have friends, fun, and a purpose. He’s a cowboy and loves to ride.”
Porter says that her son doesn’t care much about the color of ribbon that he wins but that she better have a Dr. Pepper waiting for him when he comes out of the arena.
“Forrest loves Dr. Pepper. We used to have to give him a whiskey flask filled with Dr. Pepper before he went in to show, but now he only asks for it when he comes out of the arena. He can’t live without it. I guess it is some sort of security thing for him.”
A few weeks ago, Forrest and his mom made the trip to the AQHA Convention in Las Vegas to pick up his awards.
“It was our first trip to Las Vegas,” Porter says. “He had never seen a show girl before or that many lights, but he loved it. He loves his belt buckles. He was grinning ear to ear when he got his awards. All the quarter horse people were so nice to him and came up to congratulate him.”
Terry won the showmanship award with Kahuna Lady who is a Congress Champion, Reserve Congress Champion and multiple World Show Top 10 winner.
“Lady is an incredible showmanship horse, and when Forrest puts on that chocolate brown suit and leads her into the show pen, it is hard not to fall in love with them both,” says Vallerie Sweeton, one of the founders of HOH. “Lady has given Forrest the confidence to really step up and excel in this event.”
Vallerie says that Forrest has a great personality and everyone loves him.”He has a great sense of humor and he has a victory dance he will often do after riding in a class. He also knows his patterns for his classes better then anyone else. He will often watch other riders in class go, and he always can tell me if they have made an error, even if it is a small thing like backing too many steps–he catches it.”
The other AQHA High Point winner, Jessie Naaykens, has been a leading rider in the EWD events for the past several years. In 2009, she and Chip Chocoholic (Chip) won all four events in the EWD walk/trot division. This year, Jessie and Chip won end of year honors in Hunt Seat Equitation and Horsemanship. Chip, a Congress winner in Youth Western Riding, was a force in the open/amateur and youth world for years before owner, Nancy Murfin Moxley, donated him to Horses of Hope.
“Jessie is a very quiet young lady, and very kind. She often helps at the barn as a volunteer. She grooms, helps get horses ready for lessons for other riders,” Vallerie says. “One of my favorite stories about Jessie is when we were at a horse show and she came back to the stalls with a bright pink nylon halter that had pink stones on it. I asked her if she had got that for her horse, and she said, ‘No, it’s for Deb and T.D.’ Deb is a rider at Horses of Hope that Jessie has helped and T.D. is Deb’s favorite horse. Deb loves pink, and she wears it almost everyday. When Jessie saw that pink halter, she knew that Deb would love it and she bought it for Deb with her own money.”
The Horses of Hope riding program has been able to help several individuals including the disabled, at-risk children, caregivers and their families, able-bodied riders, and professionals in the field.
“We are blessed to see miracles happen every day; we go out to the barn with our riders. Just this week, I heard from the mother of a new rider who was diagnosed with autism. During his first ride, he was catching and throwing a ball. His parents say that he has never been able to do that. After his first ride, his family saw none of his typical self stimulating mannerisms for the rest of the evening, and he went to sleep easily and slept soundly that night. After just one, 30 minute ride–amazing! It is a grand thing to have our riders accomplish so much on a national level like our show team riders, but stories like that are the really big accomplishments that our horses can bring about for people.”
HOH works with riders of all ages and abilities. HOH has riders as young as three years-old to an 89 year-old woman who rides for an hour every week, rain or shine!
“It is just so beneficial just to get the word out to people about our program and others like them. It is important for people to realize that we aren’t just giving pony rides,” Sweeton states. “My hope is for more people to understand the powerful therapeutic value of working with and riding horses. How horses can positively affect a persons, physical, cognitive and psycho/social condition is truly amazing.”
As far as donating horses, any horse that HOH considers for the program comes to them on a trial basis. Time is spent assessing the horse to be sure it is a suitable fit for the needs of the program. Many have been show horses who have either needed to be retired due to age or some minor issues that no longer allow them to continue the hard pounding life of a show circuit horse.These horses have proven to be great therapeutic riding horses.
Sweeton says that currently their program is in need of a 16 inch hunt seat saddle; tapadero/safety stirrup covers for western stirrups; two 14 inch youth western saddles; three sets of english reins; and an ASTM/SEI safety helmet.
Horses of Hope would like to thank the supporters and donors as well as the Kansas Quarter Horse Association and the Ozark Quarter Horse Association for their support and offering the EWD classes so their riders have the chance to compete.
About Horses of Hope:
In April 1997, a dream was born to provide equine-assisted therapeutic services in Southeast Kansas and the surrounding four-state area. Horses of Hope Riding Center, Inc. in Baxter Springs, Kansas opened in the fall of that year and gained affiliation with the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship, International (PATH INTL).
Horses of Hope – Missouri, Inc. was developed in 2003 with help from the Missouri Department of Economic Development Neighborhood Assistance Tax Credit Program. Horses of Hope – Missouri, Inc. has received Missouri tax credits to establish programming and complete it’s new facility.
Both centers are not-for-profit 501c3 organizations dedicated to providing professional therapeutic, educational and recreational equestrian services to all populations. It is a volunteer driven organization that reaches over 1000 people annually.
Horses of Hope Riding Center, Inc. 6968 SE 20th St., Baxter Springs, KS 66713
Phone (620)674-3458 Fax:(620)674-3233
Horses of Hope – Missouri, Inc. 55 Kelly Road, Buffalo, MO 65622
Phone (417)345-5210 Fax:(417)345-0131
Photos @ Wright Focus Photography
