Vol 34 - Riverwood Therapeutic Riding Center

August 2009
Volume No. 34
6825 Rollingview Drive Tobaccoville, North Carolina 27050
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www.riverwoodtrc.org
(336) 922-6426
Riverwood Rider
Time to Show Off!
T
his spring was a busy one for our riders at Riverwood. We had two horse shows in which over 30 riders participated.
On May 16th, we held our annual show at the Riverwood farm and had a record 22 riders participating. They showed
off their skills by riding in equitation classes, pole bending races and egg and spoon relays. The day was beautiful!
We were lucky to have Angie Redding as our judge, the Brookstown United Methodist Youth Group as assistants and
awesome hot dog grillers, Benita VanWinkle as our photographer and over 20 dedicated Riverwood volunteers and
staff members on hand to help the entire day run smoothly. Thanks to everyone for a job well done and to our riders
who really showed off their skills and talents!
On June 6th, our advanced group of riders visited TTC
farm in Mocksville for the Triad First in Families Benefit
Horse Show. Participating were: Tennessee Wright, Austin
Holloway, Jenna Smith, Kayla Vickland, Liz Baldwin and
Moriah Shore. These riders have been working on their
riding skills throughout the year, specifically trotting,
cantering and dressage tests. This show gave them the
opportunity to enter classes that were filled with other
typical riders from the community. Each rider was
responsible for helping with their own horse, cleaning tack,
preparing ahead of time for the show day and attending
mandatory practice sessions. All of the riders did a terrific
job and really did their best! Congratulations!
Calendar of Events:
Please go to www.riverwoodtrc.org to see our full calendar.
August 24: Classes begin this week for after-school riders (8/24-10/23 Fall Term)
August 31: Children’s Center Classes begin
September 7: Labor Day ALL CLASSES CONTINUE ON SCHEDULE
September 19: Annual Riverwood Bluegrass Bash 5:00 PM
October 26-30: Fall Break, No Classes
T
Summer 2009 Program
he 7-week summer program has reached new heights of success this
year. Our Summer Working Student Program was filled and had a
waiting list within two weeks of announcing that we were accepting
participants. These students are not only taking part in riding
lessons but they are also learning all the aspects of running a farm,
horse care, therapeutic riding lesson planning and procedure, and the
many other parts of keeping a horse business up and running on a daily basis. They have been willing and helpful
with every job given to them! The rest of our session is filled with some of our year round riders and many new riders
from the community. We have a group of typical adults who are as horse crazy as they were in their teens and several
new groups of children who are finding the wonder that can only come from the back of a horse. Next year’s summer
program will begin the week of June 16, 2010 and it’s never too early to sign up for it! For more information, please
contact us at rtrc@windstream.net or 336-922-6426.
Riverwood Rider
Giving to Riverwood – A Valuable Lesson
Andrea Bostic’s 5
grade students at Old Richmond Elementary School
haven’t let the economy impact their ongoing support for Riverwood Therapeutic Riding Center. As her
class did in 2008, Andrea
incorporated giving and
learning into a year-long
project. The students applied math skills to work
with the money they raised
and learned how to write
thank you letters to their
donors. They learned that,
as a team, they could work
together to help others.
th
These seventy students
donated their allowances,
washed cars, did odd jobs for neighbors and family, placed collection bottles
in local restaurants and sold chili orders to raise money for Riverwood. One
student even donated all of the money her parents awarded her for her grades
- $60 she earned went to support Riverwood.
On June 9th, these students recognized Riverwood board member, Hilary
Kosloske, for her help with their efforts by making her an honorary sponsor
of Gator, an American Paint horse.
T
Congratulations
Graduates!
We’d like to recognize the
following volunteers who will be
leaving our program because they
have graduated high school or
college:
Amy Snyder will be attending
Gardner Webb on academic
scholarship
Meaghan Kearns will be attending
Western Carolina University to
pursue her Master’s Degree
Justine Bouzon will be leaving
her foreign exchange family in
Winston-Salem to return to her
home in France
Riverwood welcomes our
newest volunteers!
Elise Borrell
Dana Cannin-Mulhearn
Lori Church
Addison Collins
Carl Cross
Alyssa DeAngelis
Amy Dillon
Donna DiPaola
Robby and Michael Hines
Tori Irvin
Hannah Jester
Shelby Johnson
Chrissy Joyce
Ashland Kittrell
McKenzie Millican
Leigh Oliver
Hank Phillips
Kellner Pruett
Bailey and Jan Taylor
Kathy Taylor
Blake Young
Centered Riding Success
he weekend of June 20 and
21 was one filled with learning
and plenty of “aha” moments for
18 people from around NC, SC
and VA. We all came together
at Riverwood farm to learn
from Robin Brueckmann about
the concepts and applications
of Centered Riding, a program
developed over 60 years ago to
create harmony and consistency in
a rider’s body in order to achieve a balanced position on the horse, no matter
what the discipline. Think about a combination of yoga, breathing, self
awareness and self discipline and you’ve got a picture of centered riding.
Robin lives in Summerfield, NC but has traveled the globe teaching this
program as well as competing on her horses in international and Olympic
venues. She brought some of her videos of her riding one of her Olympic
level horses, David, with neither stirrups nor bridle while performing the
highest level dressage test. As we all watched in wonder, there was not a
dry eye in the room. It was a beautiful demo of true partnership between
horse and rider. Although no one ended up riding bridle-less during the
weekend, there was obvious harmony and clarity reached between the rider
participants and their horses. Thanks go to everyone in attendance and to
Robin who helped make this a truly fantastic event!
Riverwood Contributors
Since April 2009
Thank you all....We hope we haven’t missed anyone. Your continued support is appreciated.
Anne Faulkner
Ashley and Cecilia Balman
Billy Joe and Kathryne Ireland
Bob and Sally Kenny
Broocks and Scott Foster
C. Elliot and Company
Cabell Fowler
Charles and Ann Williams
Cherie and David Ratcliffe
Christopher and Katherine Frantz
Cleo Hubbard
Colette and Bruce Griffin
Donna Blackwelder
Doreen Hughes
Eddie and Sandra Day
Elizabeth Oakley
Gabriela Lee
Gail Arnette
Gamma Nu of ADK
Greg, Cindy and Hannah Hiatt
Harold and Laura Beaty
Home Moravian Women’s Fellowship
Jim and Deanna Hines
JT Petty
Kathryn Parham
Keith Duffy and Rebecca Harris
Kim and John Urquhart
Knights of Columbus
Leigh Stone
Margaret Harper and Don Lendle
Marjorie Ostrove
Melanie and Richard Harkey
Melanie Harkey
Mike and Carolyn Rush
Mike and Meredith Fisher
Mrs. Ann Hutchens
Myra Miller
Pat Baker
Robert Gayle
Sharon and Donald Smith
Steve and Kelley Kirkman
Steven and Sherry Caldwell
Susan Peatross
Terry and Dolores Brennan
The Fowler Family
Tim and Beth O’Connell
W. Wake Clinard, Clinard Insurance
In Honor Of
Alison Stoltz in honor of Andrea Bostic
JT Petty in honor of Kyle Petty
Barbara Rich in honor of Andrea Bostic
Karen Calloway in honor of Andrea Bostic
Brian and Kathy McCarthy in honor of Andrea Bostic
Charlotte Alford in honor of Andrea Bostic
Cheryl Cochran in honor of Andrea Bostic
Christine Puckett in honor of Andrea Bostic
David and Carolyn Petersen in honor of Andrea Bostic
Donald and Sharon Smith in honor of Andrea Bostic
Dr. Steve Hubbard by Broocks Foster
Ernestine and Coy Conrad in honor of Andrea Bostic
Hilary Kosloske in honor of Andrea Bostic
Len and Cindy Needham in honor of Andrea Bostic
Marcia Maynard in honor of Flash
Nancy Pratt in honor of Andrea Bostic
Olivia Choplin, Judy Smith and Jeanne MacManus in honor of Martha Key
Pat Baker in honor of Andrea Bostic
Peter and Joan Robie in honor of Andrea Bostic
Richard and Nancy Fowler in honor of Andrea Bostic
Riley and Penny Lynch of Andrea Bostic
Steve and Jo Ellen Conrad in honor of Andrea Bostic
Wayne and Donna Moore in honor of Andrea Bostic
In Memory Of
Barbara Mowery in memory of her husband, Lewis K. Mowery, Sr.
Henry and Kathryn Ebert in memory of Lois Lockett Ragsdale
Mary Ann and Megan Rogers in memory of Del Rey
Sammie and Russell Goodwin in memory of CJ Sharling
Stephen and Louise Monroe in memory of Tom and Lavonda Glass’s “Biskit”
Riverwood Rider
Horse Sponsors
Horse sponsorships are $1000 a year
and help with cost of care and keeping of our loyal partners.
Fits - Jane Marvin
King - The Barksdale Family
Ibby - The Hines Family
Buddy - Mr. and Mrs. R.N. Key
Pet - Lovell’s Little Bits
Gifts in Kind
Anne and Greg Epting – hot dogs and buns for horse show
Anne Gould – tack
Hilary Kosloske – tack
Jane Marvin – horse books
Bailey Taylor - riding boots
John and Beth McCashin – 359 bales of fescue hay
Becky Forest – paper products
Lucy Boyd Taylor – tack
Benita vanWinkle and Brookstown UMC – horse show help
Mrs. Eula Speas – paper products
Bill Adams at The Golden Apple –
sponsoring Buckets & Bowls
Mt. Tabor UMC – A Great Day of Service
Dick Gordon at Freedom Beverage – sponsoring Buckets & Bowls
Rafael Grillo of Troop #918
– created picnic area off ABC trail
Bruce Holiday – filming horse show
Sam Calloway – saddles
Flash - Kerri Crater
Cooper Padgett – riding pants
Scott Foster – office supplies
Angel - The Hubbard Family
Cynthia and Mike Walker – 45 bales of hay
Susan Appt – Western saddle
Tony - Mr. and Mrs. Alan Kirby
Tony - Courtney Czarnecki in Honor of Beb McIntyre
Angel - Piedmont Kiwanis Club
Deni and Will McIntrye – tack
Gator - Andrea Bostic’s 5th Graders at
Esther Sloyer – tack
Old Richmond Elementary School in honor of Gary Overfelt – UPS Store Hilary Kosloske
– 500 copies
Blaze - Kyle and Marie Petty
Harry Dawson and Dawson Tree Service As the cost of keeping our horses increases,
– tree service and removal
we hope to have at least two sponsors for each
horse. Please consider sponsoring a horse.
Tack on Wheels – donated and discounted helmets to replace expired ones
Tess Barringer – cleaning and organizing tack room
Tom Bryan - printing support at Sharpe Images and pressure washing at the farm
Wish List
Student Sponsors
Student sponsorships are $1000
a year and supplement costs that
are not covered by tuition, including
scholarships.
Teresa Dampier
Chris and Danny Herko
Board Members
Jennifer Barksdale - Jenifer Fowler
Nancy Hancock - Deanna Hines
Susan Hubbard - Hilary Kosloske
Karen Lineberger - Keith Tart
Victoria E. Newell, DVM
Charlie Williams
• Legends 12 pellets (Southern States Feed)
• Actiflex 4000 joint supplement
• Printer/Copier Paper • Postage Stamps
• Paper Towels
• Toilet Tissue
• Liquid Hand Soap
• 12”-16” (high) cones
• Absorbine Super Green Flyspray
• Equi-Spot leave on Fly Repellent
• Equimin Mineral Block
(Southern States)
• Equine Shampoo
From the Director
Dear Friends,
I am often asked to explain why Riverwood might be a necessary activity in the life of an individual with special needs. I guess
the difficulty for some in understanding the value in therapeutic riding is because so many of the benefits are not as tangible as,
for example, the homeless having a place to live and those without a meal being fed. There are, however, many benefits that are
measurable as evidenced by the goals that are met each day on the farm. For the student without insurance to cover physical
therapy or one who is given only 20-30 visits/year, therapeutic riding is a necessary means to help loosen stiff muscles. As one
adult with MS told me, “This keeps me walking.” A young woman with severe depression states, “As soon as I started riding
I began thinking of opportunities, and new doors began to open for me.” A child with autism puts his first phrase together. A
young girl can sequence 6 obstacles on a horse when it was determined that she would never be able to sequence more than 4.
Two individuals with learning disabilities have found such self-esteem and motivation in working with the horses that they are
now valued Riverwood employees. Is Riverwood necessary? If you ask our students and our families, they will tell you YES!
Non-profits are struggling. I am sure that is not news to anyone. Riverwood is no exception. Most of us in the business of
directing charitable organizations are finding an increase in requests for service and a decrease in charitable contributions, both
corporate and individual. There is some grant money available , but that seems to be targeted to basic human needs.
I am asking for your continued support this year. Riverwood will hold its annual fundraiser September 19th here at the farm. It
will be an evening with great food, music and dancing as well as an opportunity to visit with the staff, see our facility and meet
some of our students. These events along with our annual campaign in November and our chili sale in February make up 70%
of our annual budget with tuition making up the remaining 30%. Children and adults with disabilities have many needs beyond
those of the typical population. Your support will allow us to continue to meet those needs and make a difference in the lives of
our students.
Susan
Riverwood Therapeutic Riding Center
6825 Rollingview Drive
Tobaccoville, NC 27050
6825 Rollingview Drive Tobaccoville, North Carolina 27050
www.riverwoodtrc.org
(336) 922-6426
NON-PROFIT
US POSTAGE PAID
PERMIT 21
LEWISVILLE, NC