M
Yes, I’d like to support Windridge!
Please accept my donation for $________________.
I would like my donation to be applied towards;
_____ GENERAL OPERATIONS (i.e.: $4 for 1 ream of copy
paper, $11 a day for electricity, $10 a day for liability insurance)
_____ PROGRAM PARTICIPANT SCHOLARSHIP FUND (i.e.; $40 per participant per week or $400 a 10 week session)
_____ HORSE CARE & EQUIPMENT (i.e.: $7 per day per
horse for grain, .81 per day for water for all the horses, $1.45 per
day per horse for fly spray 6 mo. per year, $50 per helmet)
_____ Acknowledge my donation as an Honorarium or Memorial
(I’ve enclosed the name and address of the individual I want to recognize.)
You may make your donation thru Windridge’s website & PayPal
F
•
•
•
•
•
•
NONPROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
DIANA, TX. 75640
PERMIT NO. 10
ark your calendars
In-Service - February 18 - 23, 2013
Spring Session - February 25th to April 20th: 8 weeks - $320
Easter - Windridge Closed: March 29th and 30th
HORSE & RIDER - April 6, 2013: 12:00 - 3:30 p.m. All invited
In-Service - April 22 - 27, 2013
Summer Session - April 29th to June 22nd: 8 weeks - class fee $320
W
TackRoom Tales
Vol. 24, No. 2
ish list
Windridge Therapeutic Equestrian Center of East Texas, Inc. strives to enhance the quality of life for children and adults
with a mental, emotional, or physical disability, or debilitating life situation, through equine-assisted activities and therapy
programs and to be an inspiration and educational resource to the therapeutic horsemanship profession.
February 2013
• Spring scholarships: $320 per participant • copy paper
• fly spray, call Windridge office for details • toilet paper
O
ur heartfelt thanks for your in-kind gifts
No gift is too small. Your in-kind donations save Windridge thousands of
dollars a year. The following gifts saved Windridge $2,100
all scholarships were provided by:
Young family paper towels
Toyota of Longview
Foundations & United Funds
Goerner family paper towels
Encana Oil & Gas
Bobbie Atkinson Foundation
Horsemasters
Equine
Training
Club
Sella family paper towels
Hollandsworth Family Foundation
Families
Hallsville United Fund
Witcher family copy paper and Godly inscription on a wooden plaque
G. Huyser L. Buck
Rossman family paper towels
Civic Organizations, Businesses
T. Hawkins J. McClain
Grace Lowrey Sun. School Class - FUMC
Hill family hay - square bales
A. Henigan S. Green
Newnham Sun. School Class - FUMC
Linton hay - square bales
J. Bagwell C. Russell
Genesis Sunday School Class - FUMC
L. Manzke J. Hale
Johnson
family paper towels
Tyler Oilmen’s Association
B. Cottingham C. Rader
El Ekan Temple
M. Schottstaedt C. Sample
eb site, facebook and newsletter
E.T. Mack Leasing
B. Bankston C. Newkirk
Please
tell
your friends to visit our web site: windridgetexas.org download newsletters from our
Liberty Tax Service
R. Russell J. Walker
news page. Take a minute and check out our promotional items. Keep up with us on Facebook
Dana Corporation
MICHAEL AND SONJA WITH INSTRUCTOR CHRIS
My Name is Michael
W
board of directors
Jim McClain
Stewart Green
Randy Monk
Phyllis Winn
Daryl Atkinson
Brenda Buck
Russell Fisher
Larry Courington
Windridge’s Board of Directors
are responsible, ethical and
moral individuals that govern
without compensation and exercises effective administrative
control. The board meet ten
months a year on the first Thursday of the month. Meetings are
not held in Aug. or Dec.
Call Margo Dewkett at Windridge 903.797.2414
if you are interested in becoming a board member.
President
Vice-President
Treasurer
Secretary
Member
Member
Member
Member
windridge staff
Margo Dewkett
Dawn Martin
Sara Kay Harding
Sarah Rollish
Debbie Dewkett
Charlynn Bradford
Chris Stow
Emily Goldman
Kirsten Allums
Mark Rooney
by michael lacipierre
Hi, my name is Michael and I would like to tell
you a little bit about me and why I enjoy coming
to Windridge.
I’m 16 years old and autistic. Many people
have different ideas of what autism is and
what it means to be autistic. The way my mom
explains it to me is that God made me extra
special.
The hard thing about having autism is people
don’t take the time out to get to know me and
to realize I’m really not that different from them.
I’m not a label I am a person. This is one reason
why I love coming to Windridge. When I’m here
I am no different than anybody else. I am able
to volunteer and work along side kids my own
age. By doing so this helps me make friends,
work with horses, and to learn more about the
friends committee
Dawn Martin - Chairman
Mary Ann Collier
Debbie Bankston
Carolyn Russell
Denise Green
Hollie Gannon
Stancy Simpson
Elton Simpson
Debbie Hays
Tom Hays
Susan Pope
Executive Director/Master Instructor - Driving level II
Executive Assistant/Advanced Instructor - Driving Level II
Development Manager
Program Assistant/Registered Instructor
Volunteer Coordinator/Registered Instructor
Equine Manager/Advanced Instructor
Facility-Technology Manager/ Reg. Instructor - Driving Level II
Equine Manager Associate/Instructor-In-Training
Equine Manager Assistant
Volunteer Instructor
Clair Balliett
Millicent Stafford
Aleatha Nall
Paula Hale
Donna Sallee
Bruce Dewkett
Wendi Goldman
Jan Lockhart
Bill Pope
Glenda Mann
Friends of Windridge are responsible for
Windridge’s annual fund-raiser: HORSE &
RIDER. Funds raised support Windridge’s
annual operating budget. Horse & Rider will
be held on Sat., April 6, 2013. Friends of
Windridge serves without compensation and
exercises effective fund-raising ethics. The
committee meets in, Nov., Jan., Feb., and
March. Want to be committee member? Call
Dawn Martin at Windridge, 903.797.2414
kidz first therapy personnel
Sue Haywood Partner/Physical Therapist - AHA Level II
Celia Bower Partner/Physical Therapist - HPSC Level II
Sarah Urbanek Physical Therapist
Windridge is a premier accredited center of the
Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship
International (PATH Intl.)
Windridge’s instructors are certified through this
national organization at one of three certification levels,
Registered, Advanced and Master
program volunteers Adult and teen volunteers help care for horses, assist instructors in class times, and with special projects.
TackRoom Tales, a Windridge newsletter, reaches out to participants, friends, and supporters, published 5 times a year: February, April, June, August & November, by Windridge
Therapeutic Equestrian Center, Inc., 593 Windridge Road, Gilmer, TX 75645. Mailing Address: P.O. Box 5932 Longview, TX 75608 Postage paid at Diana, TX.
NEWS ITEMS for TackRoom Tales can be brought to Windridge’s office; mailed to Windridge, P.O. Box 5932, Longview, TX 75608; faxed to (903) 797-6972; or e-mailed to
[email protected]. Deadline is on the fifteenth of the month prior to month of newsletter mail out. All items are published on a space-available basis. For more center information, see Windridge’s website at: windridgetexas.org, or e-mail: [email protected], or call the main office (903) 797-2414.
6 TackRoom Tales
February 2013
PAGE 2
PAGE 3
Director’s Diary
determination
Horse & Rider
announcement
PAGE 4
Program
overview
horses in a fun way.
I love riding my horse Sonja. She has a funny
personality. She is funny, playful and gentle all
at the same time.
My teacher, Chris, makes class fun so I don’t
feel like it’s work and I can’t wait to come back
next week.
I hear things more loudly
I see things more clearly
I smell things more strongly
I feel thinks you don’t
I taste things differently
I have autism
author unknown
PAGE 5
Opportunities
mark rooney
PAGE 6
Up Dates
calendar
PAGE 6
Thank You
donors
In October 1999 I was asked to facilitate
an annual board of director’s workshop for
another non-profit. The organization’s mission is to provide opportunities for children
and adults with disabilities, to give them a
chance to achieve one of their life’s goals
such as further their education, become
employed or develop life skills that would
enable them to live independent. The
purpose of the workshop was to develop a
three-year projection plan.
Since my role was to facilitate the
board’s workshop naturally I was responsible to open the meeting, keep the meeting on time and provide the direction that
would produce a projection plan.
I called the meeting to order on time
and waited for everyone to be seated when
I said, “In two and half months we will celebrate a new year and a new century!” Several board members looked at each other
and made a few lighthearted comments. I
encouraged the buzz to die down by dropping three “big-fat” 20th century books on
the table. You remember those books.
Like Time Life and the book Peter Jennings
and Todd Brewster authored. Then I said,
“These books tell stories of our accomplishments, pains, struggles and victories of the
20th century. The pictures are amazing.” I
looked around the table and opened each
book to a page that revealed pain or joy.
“The authors of these books worked hard
to portray every human emotion that can
be imagined from birth to death.” I flipped
to several other pages that I had marked.
“There are a total of 1820 pages of 20th
century history in these three books.” I
2
TackRoom Tales
February 2013
stood in front of the board of directors as
an elementary teacher would and flipped
one page after another that illustrated the
devastation of war, the horror of Pearl Harbor and the holocaust. I flipped to pages
that proudly portrayed new inventions like
the television, the wonders of Walt Disney,
Armstrong’s landing on the moon, President
Kennedy’s assignation and the overwhelming loss of those with AIDS.
I continued, “In these wonderful books
there is nothing of children and adults with
disabilities! There is nothing that describes
their situation or accomplishments! There
is however, one picture of the iron lung developed in the 1950’s for those with polio.
A picture of an invention but not one picture
of a person with polio the lung helped!” I
turned to the page of the iron lung.
I couldn’t help but add, “Throughout
these books there is not one comment or
picture of Anne Sullivan and Helen Keller.
Helen Keller died in 1968 and her ashes
were placed in the Washington National Cathedral next to Anne Sullivan’s, but nothing
has been said about these two remarkable
women. There is not one written word or
picture about the Gallaudet University for
the deaf.” I stood for a moment in silence
as I watched each board member look at
the books on the table. I took a moment to
allow my blood pressure to simmer down.
My voice had softened when I said, “I do
not understand why the human race can be
caught up in Beatle mania and not be in awe
of Liz Hartel, stricken with polio, who won a
silver medal in Dressage at the 1952 Helsinki
Olympic games. I do not understand how
two baseball teams made up entirely of
American expatriates, who went to the
Soviet Union in 1932, made the cut for
these books but there is not one picture
of the Special Olympic Games.”
I finished the opening of the meeting
by saying, “There is something however
these books exhibit about human character that causes us to be in awe of the
human race. It is what men, women
and youth can accomplish when they
are determined to overcome all odds.” I
took a breath as my emotions welled up
in me. “For this very reason is why your
organization and Windridge exists. We are
here to undergird opportunities for those
determined to overcome obstacles.” With
a smile on my face I said, “Now let’s get to
work.”
Through the years I’ve been at Windridge, there is something I have learned
about determination -- it synonymous
with the “act of patience”. With patience
determination develops single successes
that enables goals to be accomplished.
This is what the children and adults, who
ride at Windridge, have taught me. This is
what their parents, grandparents, guardians or care providers have taught me.
When you attend Horse & Rider on
April 6th please take a moment and recognize the determination the children and
adults have and the skills they’ve achieved
throughout the fall and winter. Hands that
barely can hold a water glass find a way to
grasp the reins to guide their horse, bodies
that have a difficult time sitting up work
hard to re-right against the horse’s movement, and for those who thought there
was no life with a disability find pride in
their achievements.
When you attend Horse & Rider on
April 6th please take a moment and look
around at what East Texans, not state or
federal funds, have provided to make sure
Windridge exists. As a result of God’s direction, the people’s faithfulness to follow
that direction and the people’s willingness
to offer their time and financial support to
ensure a horse can provide the necessary
therapy, Windridge exists to provide life
changing opportunities.
Opportunities that should be written
in an “East Texas big book” for the 21st
century. Thank you for being a part.
mark rooney
OPPORTUNITIES
When I was 12 years old I got to meet my
maternal great-grandmother O’Rourke,
then in her 80’s, for the first time. I
remember being fascinated by her
very strong Irish brogue, something I’d
never heard before and that sounded so
unique to my Southern California ears.
She was very nice and was happy to meet
her great-grandsons, my brother and I.
The story my dad told me about her
was that she had come over to America
from Ireland just after the turn of the
20th century, around 1902, as a young
woman. She was part of a large family
and was among the younger members
of her brothers and sisters. In those
days there wasn’t much in Ireland the
way of jobs or marriage proposals for
young women of modest background
or means. One way of pursuing either
was by immigrating to the States. So
she was able to get passage on a ship, in
steerage (the least expensive passage),
and headed to America, a place where
she had no family or friends.
When she got to Ellis Island, an entrance point into the USA, it was closed
due to the quota being reached of immigrants allowed entry, and she was unable to enter into the US. Her only other
option was to enter into Canada. From
there, as she found employment as a domestic servant in Irish homes, she made
her way into the United States. The only
catch about her method was that she
had to enter illegally. Once in America
she continued working as a domestic,
keeping a low profile to escape notice by
immigration officials. I was told she met
my great-grandfather O’Rourke when he
delivered bread from the bakery where
he worked to the home where she
worked. They married, had children (one
of them obviously my grandmother) and
settled down to raising them. So, I am
the descendant of an illegal immigrant.
I found out that she didn’t leave her
house for twenty years due to her fear
of being found out as an illegal alien
and being deported back to the “Old
Country”. She wasn’t well educated and
didn’t understand that marrying a US citizen
gave her citizenship.
So, why would a young, uneducated
woman risk coming to a foreign country
where she had no family, no job, no friends,
and with very little money? Only to be
turned away from entering this country and
be forced to enter another country, taking
jobs to carry her along till she got into the
states, and then live in fear for twenty years
of being sent away from this country she’d
risked so much to get into?
Opportunity, or as the dictionary
defines it “A favorable or advantageous
circumstance or combination of circumstances.”
There wasn’t much opportunity for my
great-grandmother in Ireland. But America
was the land of opportunity. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said “American is another name
for opportunity.” A place where a person
could accomplish that which they wanted
to attain. For my great-grandmother it was
work, and possible marriage. And the opportunity to achieve that was the strong pull
that kept her going even when roadblocks
were presented in her path.
Opportunity is a very powerful motivator to the human spirit. The phrase “Just
give me the chance” has been the springboard to many great accomplishments.
Opportunity gets our foot in the door, from
there it’s up to us to use our talents, our abilities, our drive, to make the most of what
the opportunity has to offer. Sometimes we
can even make our own opportunities for
achievement. The famous comedian Milton
Berle was quoted as saying “If opportunity
doesn’t knock, build a door.”
Windridge is a place filled with opportunity. Many people, myself included, have
come here and taken the opportunity to become certified instructors. Some have come
here, again, including myself, with a desire
to open a therapeutic riding center and take
advantage of opportunities provided to
achieve that goal. Hundreds of individuals
with physical and cognitive challenges have
come to Windridge to make the most of
opportunities provided through therapeutic
horsemanship programs to improve their
Picture: Mark Rooney, far right, instructing Danielle Hitchcock riding on Dancer.
Amanda Goldman leading and Johnathan
Rogers sidewalking. Danielle has gained her
independence on Dancer and is practicing to
demonstrate these skills at Horse & Rider on
April 6th.
quality of life. And hundreds of others have
come to Windridge to have the opportunity
to serve as volunteers. Others have helped
provide opportunities at Windridge through
their financial support. All these men,
women and youth have come together,
worked together, and created even more
opportunities for others.
One of my favorite biblical passages
about opportunity is found in John 8:1-11
when Jesus saves the adulteress from being
stoned. After he dismissed the crowd he
says to the woman “Go and sin no more”.
She had been given the opportunity to walk
away, alive and unscathed, given another
chance to continue living her life.
Opportunity is like a wrapped gift,
sometimes in gilt and sometimes in plain
paper, waiting for us to pick it up, wonder
what it has in store for us, and taking the
plunge to unwrap it and make the best of
what is has to offer. To end this I say that
it’s not a matter of taking every opportunity
given to us, there can be negative as well as
positive ones. Wisdom comes in seeing an
opportunity that brings positive outcomes
in our lives, and the courage to follow up on
what is there.
Mark Rooney became involved with
Windridge in 1995, certified in 1998.
Mark founded Equal, a PATH center
in Smith county. After Equal closed,
Mark returned to Windridge in 2009
as a volunteer instructor. Thank you
Mark for your service to Windridge.
February 2013
TackRoom Tales
5
Saturday, April 6th
12:00 - 3:30 p.m.
at Windridge’s facility
come
593 Windridge road, gilmer, tx 75645
• support the riders in their accomplishments
• enjoy a hot meal provided by herschells for $6
• shop for special items in our silent auction
• purchase raffle tickets
• purchase windridge promotional items, proceeds support our programs
Therapeutic Riding or Driving & Hippotherapy Programs
hope - confidence - optimism - assurance - possibilities - achievements
Reaching new heights through therapeutic horsemanship programs at Windridge
February 2013
TackRoom Tales
3
windridge at a glance
HISTORY
Windridge’s founder and executive
director, Margo Dewkett established
this distinctive innovative organization
amidst the piney woods of East Texas.
With the desire to share her love of
horses and provide an exceptional
therapy for children, adults and veterans with disabilities, Windridge opened
March of 1989 with five volunteers, five
horses, and two clients managed and instructed by Margo. From its beginning,
Margo and Windridge’s board of directors took a position to provide services
regardless of the family’s ability to pay
our nominal class fee. This practice is
still conducted today.
In 1997, Windridge purchased 23 acres
adjoining its founding location. In May
of 2000, construction began on a 38,000
square foot covered facility and in January, 2001 classes began in our newly
built debt-free state-of-the-art facility.
In 2009, Windridge took another step
and made a decision to help confirm
scientifically the horse’s three-dimensional movement as a therapy tool for
children, adults and veterans with disabilities. Since this decision Windridge
has built a research room furnished with
an equine treadmill, motion capture system and software specially developed
by Orbis, Inc. December 2012, marked
the beginning of Windridge’s ability to
collect and interpret data of the effects
the equine movement has on the human body.
Throughout our history, Windridge’s
most important accomplishment is its
service to those who participate in our
programs and their families. Today,
approximately 125 clients participate
weekly. Throughout the years Windridge has provided over 88,200 therapy
sessions for children, adults, and veterans in need of our services.
PROGRAMS
Windridge’s Therapeutic Riding Program provides an innovative and highly
beneficial form of therapy that incor4
TackRoom Tales
February 2013
porates education and exercise that
utilizes the beneficial movement of the
horse while teaching riding skills. The
horse’s three-dimensional movement
produces weight bearing through limbs
and joints, extension and flexion of the
spine, rotation of the human pelvis,
sensory stimulation, and normalizes
muscle tone. All are vital to a child or
adult with a disability, as their exposure
to physical exercise is often limited.
Participants also enjoy learning to care
for their horse and interact with peers,
volunteers, and instructors as they focus
on an activity that is therapeutic and
educational. Participants also experience improvement with attention span,
follow through on task, teamwork, and
social interaction all the while fostering
self sufficiency and life skills.
Hippotherapy Program – Hippo is
Greek for horse. Hippotherapy is “therapy with the help of the horse” and
a licensed physical, occupational, or
speech therapist or therapist assistant
is involved in the direct treatment session. The horse is used as a therapy tool
and position changes and exercises are
utilized to promote therapy progress.
Horsemanship skills are not focused
on in the Hippotherapy program like
they are in Therapeutic Riding. Instead
position changes and exercises are used
to influence client progress. The horse
takes approximately 3,000 steps in 30
minutes. This is 3,000 repetitions of
therapeutic movement a client receives
which cannot be duplicated in any other
traditional therapy settings. Windridge
has aligned with Kidz First Therapy
to provide hippotherapy. Kidz First
Therapy therapists in conjunction with
Windridge certified instructors provide
hippotherapy to children, ages 2 years
and older. Windridge was the first center in Texas to offer hippotherapy.
The Therapeutic Driving Program is
designed for individuals who have a desire to learn how to drive a horse drawn
vehicle. Windridge has several horse
drawn vehicles, one being a wheelchair
accessible driving vehicle, which allows
participants with high spinal cord injuries or severe brain trauma to receive
many of the same benefits of therapeutic riding; such as joint compression,
coordination, word association and the
development of new skills. Windridge
was the first center in Texas to offer
therapeutic driving to individuals with
disabilities.
Equine Services for Heroes Program
proudly serves our veterans. Throughout the years veterans who served
in World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and
Desert Storm participate in Windridge’s
therapeutic horsemanship programs.
Recently, Windridge rallied behind PATH
International’s efforts to strengthen
our veteran program with the development of Equine Services for Heroes.
Today Windridge seeks to be a part of
the therapy needed by the young men
and women who served in the Iraq and
Afghanistan wars.
Left: Tommy Beck, veteran of
Desert Storm, mounted on Kate.
Right: Veterans will be honored at Horse
& Rider on 4/6/13
In October 1999 I was asked to facilitate
an annual board of director’s workshop for
another non-profit. The organization’s mission is to provide opportunities for children
and adults with disabilities, to give them a
chance to achieve one of their life’s goals
such as further their education, become
employed or develop life skills that would
enable them to live independent. The
purpose of the workshop was to develop a
three-year projection plan.
Since my role was to facilitate the
board’s workshop naturally I was responsible to open the meeting, keep the meeting on time and provide the direction that
would produce a projection plan.
I called the meeting to order on time
and waited for everyone to be seated when
I said, “In two and half months we will celebrate a new year and a new century!” Several board members looked at each other
and made a few lighthearted comments. I
encouraged the buzz to die down by dropping three “big-fat” 20th century books on
the table. You remember those books.
Like Time Life and the book Peter Jennings
and Todd Brewster authored. Then I said,
“These books tell stories of our accomplishments, pains, struggles and victories of the
20th century. The pictures are amazing.” I
looked around the table and opened each
book to a page that revealed pain or joy.
“The authors of these books worked hard
to portray every human emotion that can
be imagined from birth to death.” I flipped
to several other pages that I had marked.
“There are a total of 1820 pages of 20th
century history in these three books.” I
2
TackRoom Tales
February 2013
stood in front of the board of directors as
an elementary teacher would and flipped
one page after another that illustrated the
devastation of war, the horror of Pearl Harbor and the holocaust. I flipped to pages
that proudly portrayed new inventions like
the television, the wonders of Walt Disney,
Armstrong’s landing on the moon, President
Kennedy’s assignation and the overwhelming loss of those with AIDS.
I continued, “In these wonderful books
there is nothing of children and adults with
disabilities! There is nothing that describes
their situation or accomplishments! There
is however, one picture of the iron lung developed in the 1950’s for those with polio.
A picture of an invention but not one picture
of a person with polio the lung helped!” I
turned to the page of the iron lung.
I couldn’t help but add, “Throughout
these books there is not one comment or
picture of Anne Sullivan and Helen Keller.
Helen Keller died in 1968 and her ashes
were placed in the Washington National Cathedral next to Anne Sullivan’s, but nothing
has been said about these two remarkable
women. There is not one written word or
picture about the Gallaudet University for
the deaf.” I stood for a moment in silence
as I watched each board member look at
the books on the table. I took a moment to
allow my blood pressure to simmer down.
My voice had softened when I said, “I do
not understand why the human race can be
caught up in Beatle mania and not be in awe
of Liz Hartel, stricken with polio, who won a
silver medal in Dressage at the 1952 Helsinki
Olympic games. I do not understand how
two baseball teams made up entirely of
American expatriates, who went to the
Soviet Union in 1932, made the cut for
these books but there is not one picture
of the Special Olympic Games.”
I finished the opening of the meeting
by saying, “There is something however
these books exhibit about human character that causes us to be in awe of the
human race. It is what men, women
and youth can accomplish when they
are determined to overcome all odds.” I
took a breath as my emotions welled up
in me. “For this very reason is why your
organization and Windridge exists. We are
here to undergird opportunities for those
determined to overcome obstacles.” With
a smile on my face I said, “Now let’s get to
work.”
Through the years I’ve been at Windridge, there is something I have learned
about determination -- it synonymous
with the “act of patience”. With patience
determination develops single successes
that enables goals to be accomplished.
This is what the children and adults, who
ride at Windridge, have taught me. This is
what their parents, grandparents, guardians or care providers have taught me.
When you attend Horse & Rider on
April 6th please take a moment and recognize the determination the children and
adults have and the skills they’ve achieved
throughout the fall and winter. Hands that
barely can hold a water glass find a way to
grasp the reins to guide their horse, bodies
that have a difficult time sitting up work
hard to re-right against the horse’s movement, and for those who thought there
was no life with a disability find pride in
their achievements.
When you attend Horse & Rider on
April 6th please take a moment and look
around at what East Texans, not state or
federal funds, have provided to make sure
Windridge exists. As a result of God’s direction, the people’s faithfulness to follow
that direction and the people’s willingness
to offer their time and financial support to
ensure a horse can provide the necessary
therapy, Windridge exists to provide life
changing opportunities.
Opportunities that should be written
in an “East Texas big book” for the 21st
century. Thank you for being a part.
mark rooney
OPPORTUNITIES
When I was 12 years old I got to meet my
maternal great-grandmother O’Rourke,
then in her 80’s, for the first time. I
remember being fascinated by her
very strong Irish brogue, something I’d
never heard before and that sounded so
unique to my Southern California ears.
She was very nice and was happy to meet
her great-grandsons, my brother and I.
The story my dad told me about her
was that she had come over to America
from Ireland just after the turn of the
20th century, around 1902, as a young
woman. She was part of a large family
and was among the younger members
of her brothers and sisters. In those
days there wasn’t much in Ireland the
way of jobs or marriage proposals for
young women of modest background
or means. One way of pursuing either
was by immigrating to the States. So
she was able to get passage on a ship, in
steerage (the least expensive passage),
and headed to America, a place where
she had no family or friends.
When she got to Ellis Island, an entrance point into the USA, it was closed
due to the quota being reached of immigrants allowed entry, and she was unable to enter into the US. Her only other
option was to enter into Canada. From
there, as she found employment as a domestic servant in Irish homes, she made
her way into the United States. The only
catch about her method was that she
had to enter illegally. Once in America
she continued working as a domestic,
keeping a low profile to escape notice by
immigration officials. I was told she met
my great-grandfather O’Rourke when he
delivered bread from the bakery where
he worked to the home where she
worked. They married, had children (one
of them obviously my grandmother) and
settled down to raising them. So, I am
the descendant of an illegal immigrant.
I found out that she didn’t leave her
house for twenty years due to her fear
of being found out as an illegal alien
and being deported back to the “Old
Country”. She wasn’t well educated and
didn’t understand that marrying a US citizen
gave her citizenship.
So, why would a young, uneducated
woman risk coming to a foreign country
where she had no family, no job, no friends,
and with very little money? Only to be
turned away from entering this country and
be forced to enter another country, taking
jobs to carry her along till she got into the
states, and then live in fear for twenty years
of being sent away from this country she’d
risked so much to get into?
Opportunity, or as the dictionary
defines it “A favorable or advantageous
circumstance or combination of circumstances.”
There wasn’t much opportunity for my
great-grandmother in Ireland. But America
was the land of opportunity. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said “American is another name
for opportunity.” A place where a person
could accomplish that which they wanted
to attain. For my great-grandmother it was
work, and possible marriage. And the opportunity to achieve that was the strong pull
that kept her going even when roadblocks
were presented in her path.
Opportunity is a very powerful motivator to the human spirit. The phrase “Just
give me the chance” has been the springboard to many great accomplishments.
Opportunity gets our foot in the door, from
there it’s up to us to use our talents, our abilities, our drive, to make the most of what
the opportunity has to offer. Sometimes we
can even make our own opportunities for
achievement. The famous comedian Milton
Berle was quoted as saying “If opportunity
doesn’t knock, build a door.”
Windridge is a place filled with opportunity. Many people, myself included, have
come here and taken the opportunity to become certified instructors. Some have come
here, again, including myself, with a desire
to open a therapeutic riding center and take
advantage of opportunities provided to
achieve that goal. Hundreds of individuals
with physical and cognitive challenges have
come to Windridge to make the most of
opportunities provided through therapeutic
horsemanship programs to improve their
Picture: Mark Rooney, far right, instructing Danielle Hitchcock riding on Dancer.
Amanda Goldman leading and Johnathan
Rogers sidewalking. Danielle has gained her
independence on Dancer and is practicing to
demonstrate these skills at Horse & Rider on
April 6th.
quality of life. And hundreds of others have
come to Windridge to have the opportunity
to serve as volunteers. Others have helped
provide opportunities at Windridge through
their financial support. All these men,
women and youth have come together,
worked together, and created even more
opportunities for others.
One of my favorite biblical passages
about opportunity is found in John 8:1-11
when Jesus saves the adulteress from being
stoned. After he dismissed the crowd he
says to the woman “Go and sin no more”.
She had been given the opportunity to walk
away, alive and unscathed, given another
chance to continue living her life.
Opportunity is like a wrapped gift,
sometimes in gilt and sometimes in plain
paper, waiting for us to pick it up, wonder
what it has in store for us, and taking the
plunge to unwrap it and make the best of
what is has to offer. To end this I say that
it’s not a matter of taking every opportunity
given to us, there can be negative as well as
positive ones. Wisdom comes in seeing an
opportunity that brings positive outcomes
in our lives, and the courage to follow up on
what is there.
Mark Rooney became involved with
Windridge in 1995, certified in 1998.
Mark founded Equal, a PATH center
in Smith county. After Equal closed,
Mark returned to Windridge in 2009
as a volunteer instructor. Thank you
Mark for your service to Windridge.
February 2013
TackRoom Tales
5
M
Yes, I’d like to support Windridge!
Please accept my donation for $________________.
I would like my donation to be applied towards;
_____ GENERAL OPERATIONS (i.e.: $4 for 1 ream of copy
paper, $11 a day for electricity, $10 a day for liability insurance)
_____ PROGRAM PARTICIPANT SCHOLARSHIP FUND (i.e.; $40 per participant per week or $400 a 10 week session)
_____ HORSE CARE & EQUIPMENT (i.e.: $7 per day per
horse for grain, .81 per day for water for all the horses, $1.45 per
day per horse for fly spray 6 mo. per year, $50 per helmet)
_____ Acknowledge my donation as an Honorarium or Memorial
(I’ve enclosed the name and address of the individual I want to recognize.)
You may make your donation thru Windridge’s website & PayPal
F
•
•
•
•
•
•
NONPROFIT ORG.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
DIANA, TX. 75640
PERMIT NO. 10
ark your calendars
In-Service - February 18 - 23, 2013
Spring Session - February 25th to April 20th: 8 weeks - $320
Easter - Windridge Closed: March 29th and 30th
HORSE & RIDER - April 6, 2013: 12:00 - 3:30 p.m. All invited
In-Service - April 22 - 27, 2013
Summer Session - April 29th to June 22nd: 8 weeks - class fee $320
W
TackRoom Tales
Vol. 24, No. 2
ish list
Windridge Therapeutic Equestrian Center of East Texas, Inc. strives to enhance the quality of life for children and adults
with a mental, emotional, or physical disability, or debilitating life situation, through equine-assisted activities and therapy
programs and to be an inspiration and educational resource to the therapeutic horsemanship profession.
• Spring scholarships: $320 per participant • copy paper
• fly spray, call Windridge office for details • toilet paper
O
ur heartfelt thanks for your in-kind gifts
No gift is too small. Your in-kind donations save Windridge thousands of
dollars a year. The following gifts saved Windridge $2,100
all scholarships were provided by:
Young family paper towels
Toyota of Longview
Foundations & United Funds
Goerner family paper towels
Encana Oil & Gas
Bobbie Atkinson Foundation
Horsemasters
Equine
Training
Club
Sella family paper towels
Hollandsworth Family Foundation
Families
Hallsville United Fund
Witcher family copy paper and Godly inscription on a wooden plaque
G. Huyser L. Buck
Rossman family paper towels
Civic Organizations, Businesses
T. Hawkins J. McClain
Grace Lowrey Sun. School Class - FUMC
Hill family hay - square bales
A. Henigan S. Green
Newnham Sun. School Class - FUMC
Linton hay - square bales
J. Bagwell C. Russell
Genesis Sunday School Class - FUMC
L. Manzke J. Hale
Johnson
family paper towels
Tyler Oilmen’s Association
B. Cottingham C. Rader
El Ekan Temple
M. Schottstaedt C. Sample
eb site, facebook and newsletter
E.T. Mack Leasing
B. Bankston C. Newkirk
Please
tell
your friends to visit our web site: windridgetexas.org download newsletters from our
Liberty Tax Service
R. Russell J. Walker
news page. Take a minute and check out our promotional items. Keep up with us on Facebook
Dana Corporation
MICHAEL AND SONJA WITH INSTRUCTOR CHRIS
My Name is Michael
W
board of directors
Jim McClain
Stewart Green
Randy Monk
Phyllis Winn
Daryl Atkinson
Brenda Buck
Russell Fisher
Larry Courington
Windridge’s Board of Directors
are responsible, ethical and
moral individuals that govern
without compensation and exercises effective administrative
control. The board meet ten
months a year on the first Thursday of the month. Meetings are
not held in Aug. or Dec.
Call Margo Dewkett at Windridge 903.797.2414
if you are interested in becoming a board member.
President
Vice-President
Treasurer
Secretary
Member
Member
Member
Member
windridge staff
Margo Dewkett
Dawn Martin
Sara Kay Harding
Sarah Rollish
Debbie Dewkett
Charlynn Bradford
Chris Stow
Emily Goldman
Kirsten Allums
Mark Rooney
by michael lacipierre
Hi, my name is Michael and I would like to tell
you a little bit about me and why I enjoy coming
to Windridge.
I’m 16 years old and autistic. Many people
have different ideas of what autism is and
what it means to be autistic. The way my mom
explains it to me is that God made me extra
special.
The hard thing about having autism is people
don’t take the time out to get to know me and
to realize I’m really not that different from them.
I’m not a label I am a person. This is one reason
why I love coming to Windridge. When I’m here
I am no different than anybody else. I am able
to volunteer and work along side kids my own
age. By doing so this helps me make friends,
work with horses, and to learn more about the
friends committee
Dawn Martin - Chairman
Mary Ann Collier
Debbie Bankston
Carolyn Russell
Denise Green
Hollie Gannon
Stancy Simpson
Elton Simpson
Debbie Hays
Tom Hays
Susan Pope
Executive Director/Master Instructor - Driving level II
Executive Assistant/Advanced Instructor - Driving Level II
Development Manager
Program Assistant/Registered Instructor
Volunteer Coordinator/Registered Instructor
Equine Manager/Advanced Instructor
Facility-Technology Manager/ Reg. Instructor - Driving Level II
Equine Manager Associate/Instructor-In-Training
Equine Manager Assistant
Volunteer Instructor
Clair Balliett
Millicent Stafford
Aleatha Nall
Paula Hale
Donna Sallee
Bruce Dewkett
Wendi Goldman
Jan Lockhart
Bill Pope
Glenda Mann
Friends of Windridge are responsible for
Windridge’s annual fund-raiser: HORSE &
RIDER. Funds raised support Windridge’s
annual operating budget. Horse & Rider will
be held on Sat., April 6, 2013. Friends of
Windridge serves without compensation and
exercises effective fund-raising ethics. The
committee meets in, Nov., Jan., Feb., and
March. Want to be committee member? Call
Dawn Martin at Windridge, 903.797.2414
kidz first therapy personnel
Sue Haywood Partner/Physical Therapist - AHA Level II
Celia Bower Partner/Physical Therapist - HPSC Level II
Sarah Urbanek Physical Therapist
Windridge is a premier accredited center of the
Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship
International (PATH Intl.)
Windridge’s instructors are certified through this
national organization at one of three certification levels,
Registered, Advanced and Master
program volunteers Adult and teen volunteers help care for horses, assist instructors in class times, and with special projects.
TackRoom Tales, a Windridge newsletter, reaches out to participants, friends, and supporters, published 5 times a year: February, April, June, August & November, by Windridge
Therapeutic Equestrian Center, Inc., 593 Windridge Road, Gilmer, TX 75645. Mailing Address: P.O. Box 5932 Longview, TX 75608 Postage paid at Diana, TX.
NEWS ITEMS for TackRoom Tales can be brought to Windridge’s office; mailed to Windridge, P.O. Box 5932, Longview, TX 75608; faxed to (903) 797-6972; or e-mailed to
[email protected]. Deadline is on the fifteenth of the month prior to month of newsletter mail out. All items are published on a space-available basis. For more center information, see Windridge’s website at: windridgetexas.org, or e-mail: [email protected], or call the main office (903) 797-2414.
6 TackRoom Tales
February 2013
February 2013
PAGE 2
Director’s Diary
determination
PAGE 3
Horse & Rider
announcement
PAGE 4
Program
overview
horses in a fun way.
I love riding my horse Sonja. She has a funny
personality. She is funny, playful and gentle all
at the same time.
My teacher, Chris, makes class fun so I don’t
feel like it’s work and I can’t wait to come back
next week.
I hear things more loudly
I see things more clearly
I smell things more strongly
I feel thinks you don’t
I taste things differently
I have autism
author unknown
PAGE 5
Opportunities
mark rooney
PAGE 6
Up Dates
calendar
PAGE 6
Thank You
donors