SoCal Girl Volunteers

Last Sunday, one of my coworkers invited me to come volunteer with her at the Equestrian Therapy Center in Simi Valley. Every Sunday morning, the owner of the mini ranch (ranchette?) holds horse-riding lessons for disabled children, providing them with a safe environment in which to learn a variety of equestrian skills. Being an animal-lover myself, I was beyond excited to work with horses and volunteer for such a cool organization.

 I met up with J, my coworker, early Sunday morning, and she took me through the security gates of the American Jewish University, which is where all these horses are housed. As we drove along the tree-lined entrance pathway, I was shocked by how much open land was hidden away in this corner of our little city. We drove towards the stables, and once we got there, I nearly forgot I was still in Simi Valley and not on some farm far, far away. There was a herd of goats bleating away, dozens of horses hunting around for hay, chickens squawking in a corner, peacocks peacocking and a stray cat sashaying about, begging to be pet. As soon we entered the stable, the horses began nudging us with their heads, silently reminding us to feed them.

(Subtly reminding us about their empty feeding barrel)

We started the morning by cleaning out their stalls and feeding them their breakfast. As they attacked their food (and each other over the hay), we scrubbed and brushed their coats until they shined and cleaned out their hooves with picks just to make sure there were no troublesome rocks stuck in there. 

Just as they finished eating, the kids started arriving, and so we began saddling the horses up. The first class consisted of three kids, and after each kid was outfitted up in boots and a helmet, they were assigned three volunteers-one to lead the horse, and two to flank the horse on both sides and lock the child into their saddle.

The first part of the lesson consisted of a 20-minute trail ride, following a winding path around the campus. We stopped half-way through, and the kids did their usual stretches perched on top of their horses, and then we started heading back to the pens. Once we reached the pens, we split up into two groups. The older and/or more experienced kids went off to practice trotting and cantering in the riding arena, while the younger, less experienced kids were taken into a separate pen, where a variety of games were set up to improve their horse riding skills, dexterity, and motor skills.

By the time the third (and last) class of the day begun, it was near noon, and the sun was scorching hot. Everyone was all sweaty and dusty by the time we came back from the trails, and thus we only halfheartedly chased away the peacocks that kept pecking at the shiny paint on one of the cars. Exhausted, but pleased with our efforts for the day, we all slowly made our way back home. Volunteering at the Equestrian Therapy Center was such a wonderful and fulfilling experience; I’ll definitely be going back many more Sundays from here on out.