BEDFORD CORNERS — Will Black flashed his mom a wide grin and a thumbs up as he made another slow lap around the arena, perched atop a brown and white mare named Swirl.
Black grew up with an intellectual disability and other challenges and has been riding since he was 4, a cherished activity he has continued into his adulthood. He is 25 now and as eager as ever to return each week to the tranquility of Endeavor Farm for a soothing hour of communion with its equine healers.
“He loves coming here, and he also feels like he belongs here,” his mother, Caroline Black, said as she watched Will’s latest session with Endeavor Therapeutic Horsemanship, the nonprofit organization she co-founded in 2014.
“He hounds me, he sets an alarm on his phone,” she added with a laugh. “It’s like, ‘Mom, it’s time to go.’ And he’s got his boots on, and he knows where his helmet is.”
Set in the semi-rural environs of northern Westchester County, Endeavor has been a refuge for many in its dozen years, a place of healing and acceptance in the company of gentle, sensitive creatures, each sharply attuned to the humans around them. There are 15 in all, from the miniature duo of Cody and Cookie to the thoroughbred Rye and sweet Clifford, who enjoys scratches and a good grooming.
Veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, kids with autism and cerebral palsy, children from troubled environments — they and others all come to Endeavor for quiet interactions and signs of progress that are described with amazement, in almost mystical terms.
Rhythmic gait is a soothing force at Endeavor
One secret is the horse’s steady gait, a sonata of body motions that the rider soon begins to absorb from the saddle and that has a visibly calming effect.
“You see an individual get on and they may be a little disregulated, may be a little disorganized,” said Marny Mansfield, Endeavor’s senior program and education specialist. “And after spending that time with that rhythmic, regular gait, it’s very interesting to see. You see speech get better; all of a sudden they’re more able to coordinate their eyes, coordinate their body, because they’re getting such regular rhythmic input.”
Endeavor has a paid staff of 13 and an army of about 70 volunteers each week to run four types of programs. It offers therapeautic horsemanship to children and adults with disabilities, teaching equine skills both on and off the horse. There’s “equine-assisted learning” for students from local schools. The “Pathways” program caters to vulnerable populations such as those suffering from addiction or mental illness and survivors of domestic violence.
Endeavor’s busiest program is one for veterans. Other Endeavor participants pay for services, generally $100 a session. But veterans and active-duty service members, some carrying deep internal scars from combat, come for free and are welcome to return as many times as they want. Thirty are currently signed up for sessions.
Visiting prisons to bring calm to the incarcerated
The horses also make occasional house calls, including at two nearby prisons for women.
Every spring and fall, the staff holds 10-week sessions at maximum-security Bedford Hills Correctional Facility and at Taconic Correctional Facility, the lower-level prison next door. For one day each week, groups of incarcerated women are put in the calming presence of one or more horses and taught grooming and other skills to enable them to work at race tracks when they get out.
Endeavor is a donor-driven enterprise that holds four fundraisers every year to help sustain its modest operation, with about $1.5 million in annual expenses. Its next event is its annual family barbecue, on Sept. 13.
Building confidence and imparting joy
Endeavor’s staff has years of experience and a load of credentials in horsemanship and other professional fields, such as mental health, social work and early childhood education. But what those workers gush about in interviews is the remarkable power of the non-verbal lessons that their equine partners convey.
Just being around the horses helps domestic violence survivors gradually regain confidence, said Barbara Carbone, a social worker and mental health specialist at Endeavor.
“The horses are very big, powerful beings,” she said. “And to be able to sit, to be respected by these amazing animals that are here and feel that they can stand alongside them, and feel calm, and not feel fear — the impact is just beyond what I” expected in 35 years as a therapist.
Jenny Heffer, an Endeavor program manager and instructor, stressed another part: the joy that horses manage to bring to people with varied and complicated challenges, both physical and emotional. She recalled the reaction earlier that day when she was ready to start a class and the horses caused a bit of mayhem.
“The horses went in and they knocked over every single barrel that was in the ring, and they were moving things, and the kids were laughing,” she said. “There is a time to be joyful, and if you can laugh while you’re learning, there needs to be that. So I think the joy for me is a really big component.”
Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA TODAY Network. Reach him at CMcKenna@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Horses bring healing, joy at Endeavor therapeutic farm in Westchester
Reporting by Chris McKenna, New York State Team / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Chris McKenna, New York State Team | USA TODAY Network
