Ready Set Ride: Horses Helping Kids
Just an hour away is a facility that is using horses to give new life to kids with special needs.
Val had a chance to visit Ready Set Ride to learn why this place brings such joy to those who work there and to the students and their parents as well.
ABOUT READY SET RIDE:
Since 2001, Ready Set Ride Therapeutic Recreation Facility has been assisting special needs or terminally ill children by providing horseback riding services.
Located in Plainfield Illinois, students as young as three years of age come from all over the Chicagoland area. It is the goal of Ready Set Ride to assist these children in achieving the highest quality of life possible through the use of horses and individualized activities focused on the needs of the student. Parents are always welcome and encouraged to participate in therapy sessions. Volunteers are also an integral part of the therapy sessions at Ready Set Ride.
Following Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship (PATH) guidelines, Ready Set Ride bases its program on developmental techniques utilizing the horses as a means of mobility for the children. Certified therapeutic riding instructors guide the students and closely monitor individual needs to encourage consistent improvement. Therapy is conducted in the form of games on horseback which incorporate physical, speech, occupational, developmental and recreational therapy.
Ready Set Ride is a 501(C)(3) non-profit charitable organization that operates mostly on donations. Donations are tax deductible.
