UPDATE: January 3, 2012:
We still need more funds! In our haste to raise money for Straw to be able to stay on with us at SROH / SROL we forgot the fact that her owner is now no longer the owner of the farm...and she will have to pay "stall fees" like all the other horses. So we are a bit short on the math end of the funds needed to cover her bills. Since we cannot collect these funds until Jan 28th - we are extending the campaign to run beyond $3,000. Our new goal is to reach a total of $4,500.00 (an additional $1,500). So this account is still accepting funds for Straw - Thank you so much to all who donated this far it is very promising for all of us!!!Our Story
Spring Reins of Life (Horses, Humans and Healing) is a new nonprofit org offering Equine Assisted Services (EAP and EAL) under the EAGALA Model in NJ and NY. We offer our services free of charge to At Risk Youth, Military and their Families, and Bereaved Children. We lease space at a farm in Pittstown that is in foreclosure (this news came to us by way of seeing a Sheriff Sale date (11/30/11) posted on the front gate one day), so needless to say a surprise!
The owner of the farm at High Pointe Equine Center (HPEC) had 4 horses on the property - which we found out from the bank had be off grounds by 12/1/11 or...well...its very bad news for horses. With the owners permission we placed 3 of the 4 horses into loving, forever safe, REAL homes! Yes in less than 3 weeks! There is a 4th horse on the farm that is in lease to SROH (our sister profit LLC - Spring Reins of Hope) and we have discovered in the past year is a brilliant EAP healer and teacher...this horse is the reason we are on here!
Meet "Straw"
Straw is the 4th (and last) mare at the farm
that needs assistance during the foreclosure surprise this fall. Straw
is disabled. But she is ABLE!
Straw was a champion
broodmare - putting more than 10 western champions on the ground. She
broke her knee (? not sure how?) and was brought to HPEC to get
hydo-therapy. Her leg healed to the point of bearing her weight and
allowing her to move around, but when her breeder owners learned she
could no longer have babies they left her there. What gratitude for all
those champions she made for them?!
The owner of HPEC
fell for her huge heart and incredible will to survive and provided her a
home, where she has been now for several years. Just recently in
October we learned that the farm (where SROL leases space) is in
foreclosure with a Sheriff Sale set for 11/30/11. Straw can remain on
the property as she is in an EAP lease from her owner to our LLC Spring
Reins of Hope. Bank is negotiating now a way for us to remain on the
property as a land/farm management lease.
The Impact
For the past
year (first with our profit biz SROH, and now she works exclusively
through our non-profit SROL) Straw has demonstrated how magical she is
as an EAP healer!!!
- She teaches empathy and compassion to gang youth in less than 10 minutes in an exercise we do called "Care for the Mare" - - -
- She
allows soldiers to see that even though you may be broken in some
areas, that doesn't mean your are fully broken...and there is a way
through the heart center to keep finding your path to walk by - - -
- She
pours out love and compassion to the young children that come for
healing with bereavement and loss...and sometimes when you are suffering
greatly you just need to feel pure love...Straw knows how to send that
so you feel it your whole body - just by being in her presence - - -
Straw has been evaluated by two vets who both state that while she is mechanically disabled, her legs have fused and healed to the point where she gets around okay and is not in any chronic or severe pain. They also recognize that the extra support we give her with a specialty farrier (feet) are necessary for her to be doing so well. She cannot be turned out and left alone, she does need special care and monitoring. If Straw is not covered to stay on with us at SROL and under our supervision and maintenance - chances are she will deteriorate rapidly. Essentially we are faced with the knowledge that if we cannot keep Straw with us - chances are very good she will not make it on her own. As a regular horse her disabilities seem as though she is useless or should be put down. But to us - those who have witnessed her big heart, her tremendous courage, her outpouring of love and nurturing, her wisdom, and her CAN DO attitude - we cannot imagine our EAP program without her help!!!
Also, we are heart broken at the idea that if Straw cannot remain with us there will be many hearts and lives that she wont be able to touch. If you could see her in action you would fall in love with her the same way we have and so many teens from Queens and Brooklyn have. To see a wounded warrior break down and cry on her shoulder and then tell us how because she is so strong and doesn't see "broken" he was inspired to live like her! That is valuable! That is something that is tangible and matters huge in the lives of the people we serve. So if we lose her, we lose so much, but really the ones who lose the most are the suffering souls that she soothes...
And because Straw brings so much to the world with her funny crooked front legs, we really want to let her know that the world will give back to her. Our non profit given the time and ability to create a fund for her will be able to provide for her care, but we need a head start! The timing of this farm crash could not have been worse!
PLEASE HELP!
What We Need & What You Get
WE HAVE A SPONSOR for $2,000 - Yay! However we need to raise minimum matching funds (or goods) in order to get this money.
So this is a plea for donations of any amount that will total up to an
additional $3,000 reaching our goal of $5K to support Straw for most of the next
year. Her current owner is able to provide her daily hay rations for the
year, a portion of her monthly stall fee and her dental visits - but that is all he
can pay for...at this time.
What does the money pay for?:
***FEET (Trimming)
- As you can imagine Straw needs a special farrier on her feet to allow
her the best gravitational balance possible... Daisy Haven Farm travels
from PA to NJ every 5 weeks to do our SROL horses, Straw is a horse
that must have constant monitoring of her hoof angles and growth so that
her balance can be as correct as possible.
Cost: $75.00 per visit (roughly 10-11 visits per year)
FEED (Grain)
- Straw eats 6 quarts of feed per day (that is roughly 12 pounds). So
she will consume eight (8) 50# bags per month. We will take donations
of feed bags if locally sponsored, or the money to buy feed as we go.
Currently she is eating Purina Strategy which is 13.00 per bag, however
if up to us, we would like her be on a cleaner feed that doesn't cause
any inflammatory response (ie: GMO, fillers, high soy content)...so if
given that opportunity to switch to a cleaner feed then her feed cost
would rise to approx 22.00 per bag.
Cost: $104 - 160.00 per month
LABOR (her daily care)
- We have a wonderful groom who takes the extra measures for each of
the horses, if we have bad weather and the horses are inside, Straws
legs get wrapped for extra support, she is not able to withstand the
extremes of weather (too hot, too cold, ice, mud, all create situations
for her that can be dangerous). Extra care is given ensure she not at
the mercy of the elements or wont slip and lose her balance to fall
down...
Cost: $125.00 per month
BEDDING
- Straw is a horse that cannot live outside. She can slip and fall in
the winter when its icy or muddy, and so during the day when she can be
supervised she is turned out, at night she is in a stall with bedding
(banked walls) so that she is safe from slipping and falling. In the
summer the days are heavy with flies and because of her knee being so
compromised, and her opp front leg's fetlock is completely fused - she
is unable to stomp at flies on her front legs...so in the height of the
summer months she needs to be inside during that time.
Cost proportionate: $83.00 per month
So here is our plea - Please send any amount that you can to help us
reach our $3,000 goal. Our plan is that within the next year our non
profit group programs will be busy enough to continue fund raising for
Straw's care. She is worth so much to the work we do and in essence
will change and heal many lives through EAP. This mess at the farm was a
total surprise and therefore none of us were prepared or able to
suddenly take on her expense. Yet if you knew her you would agree...this
is her calling and her destiny. We also worry that on her own - she
would not fare very well, if at all.
A bunch of $10 and $20 dollars will add up!
If anyone can afford to send more - wings are growing - and a big thank you!
*Donations for Straw are tax deductible
Other Ways You Can Help
If anyone is in the NJ area and wants to donate actual feed (grain) or bedding (shavings) we can accept that in place of the money for feed and bedding.
Otherwise we are really seeking the financial support for Straw so that time doesn't run out on her. She is a very special soul and we are holding a vigil prayer every night that she be able to stay with us and stay doing her EAP work healing others.
Also please note that $5,000 will just barely cover her costs for 12 months, if anyone is so moved to want to know more or how to help her beyond her feed and housing...we would welcome a way to do that. So if you are reading this are a millionaire horse lover - please contact us to see how you can change her life. All donations are tax deductible in any amount.
