Horses Adaptive Riding & Therapy
By Julie Oakes, The West Side Newspaper
It’s hard to see how sitting on a horse can be a workout. Sure, the rider has to hold on, but the horse is the one doing all the work, right?
Not so. Riding a horse is a full-body experience just to balance. It tests stamina, coordination, and agility. Gallop off into the sunset and you’ll feel it all over by morning.
But to Lacey Wilfong, horse riding isn’t a challenge: it’s her friend and physical therapy partner. The 26-year-old from Monmouth doesn’t miss a chance to ride Athena, a towering black Percheron who is “bomb-proof” steady. The two join three handlers who guide them around the arena while Lacey practices arm movements.
“This gives her independence and she gets to be with others,” says her father Rich Wilfong, watching from the side. They have been coming every week for 11 years, he says. “I see a difference in her every time we come.”
Wilfong is a client of Horses Adaptive Riding & Therapy, a nonprofit organization in Eola that uses horses to help people heal physically, mentally, and emotionally from myriad issues. She is a non-verbal cerebral palsy patient, while other people suffer from anxiety, ADHD, autism, hearing or vision loss, Down Syndrome, and neurodiverse conditions.
“When you’re in a wheelchair, you don’t move, but riding works muscles all over the body,” says Myrna Gulick, a HART founder and longtime equestrian. “Kids might not want to do physical therapy, but this is fun. And people are excited and happy to see you.”
With the horses, clients strengthen muscles and boost agility, such as Lacey touching each side of the horse with the opposite hand. Clients learn how to follow instructions, have conversation, and enjoy the confidence boost that comes with climbing on top of a giant animal and hitting the trail. And being around a horse soothes a person’s nervous system as the calm horse adjusts its heart rate to match.
“It’s therapeutic, but it’s fun,” says Jolene Magill, president of the HART board of directors and also a longtime rider. “Sometimes we get quick results, others take longer.”
HART opened its doors in 2015 and now serves 113 clients ages 4 to 88, with 20 more people on the waiting list. It is open Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Sessions cost $50 for 30 minutes, but many riders pay $5. The gap is subsidized by scholarships, donations, and year-round fundraisers like the annual car show, golf tournament, family fair, and sales of candy, wreaths, and flowers. HART also has a wish list set up on Amazon.
The organization has three part-time staffers and soon a full-time director. There’s a team of volunteers, but more are always wanted. They do everything from cleaning stalls to greeting people at the front door.
The group has operated in Eola at West Hills Stables and Vineyard, which is owned by Gulick and her husband, Jim. The Gulicks stepped up in 2015 because their grandson had cerebral palsy and his physical therapist recommended horse therapy.
This month HART opened its door on a new property nearby at 6050 Highway 22, just before the Independence exit and across from Restlawn’s cemetery. To celebrate, they are holding an open house 6-9:30 p.m. Oct. 10 for the public to see the horses and facility, and learn about the program. The event features dinner, drinks, live music, and an auction. Cost is $50 per person.
The new facility will have more of everything, including trails and a lift to help riders onto horses. Paraplegics will now be able to participate, as well.
“We have a lot of clients who have zero horse experience,” says Magill, who runs a local insurance company and volunteers heavily at the stables. She got involved years ago because her young daughter had cerebral palsy. “It would have never crossed my mind to put her on a horse,” she says.
Indeed, not all clients ride but they can participate in “equine assisted learning” (EAL). Some people groom the horses, or walk them through a course. One woman reads to her horse. Another client braids her favorite horse’s mane.
The “therapists” are game for all of it. Besides Athena, who is 16, there is Piper, 7; Thor, 19; Loki, 11; and Oldermann, a stately old 26 years. Oldermann was pastured for a break, but he didn’t care for it and was back to work fast. The horses are a mix of colors, sizes and breeds, including Gypsy Vanner, Icelandic pony, Percheron, and Norwegian Fjord.
After their session, Lacey and Athena say good-bye, a rare and tender moment at the stables. Most horses and riders enjoy each other, but none are bonded like those two. Athena meets Lacey at her wheelchair and lowers her head for a sweet nose-to-nose exchange. The horse bends closer, in no hurry to leave.
“Horses are magic,” says Gulick. “They kind of take you in.”
For more information, call HART at (971) 289-6119 or visit www.hartadaptiveriding.org.