Beech Tree News Network

New Beginning Therapeutic Riding - I've always said, "everyone needs a dream, a mission in life." I feel the good Lord did not put us on this earth to just be breathers. This story is a venue that was brought to life because of a dream one lady had. A dream she was determined to make come true to help others.

While seeking out my next story to share, other than saying God placed this on my heart, there is no explanation of how I ended up contacting Michele at New Beginnings Therapeutic Riding in Bowling Green. What an absolute beautiful hearted lady.  As we sat together on the couch in the lobby, Michele Vise shared the founder, (Julie Peterson's) dream and how it became a reality.
Julie had read a book by one of my favorite authors, Danielle Steel, titled The Palomino. This novel is about a lady that fell from a horse and lived the rest of her life in a wheelchair. Determined this was not going to be the rest of her story, she decided to take matters into her own hands. She was living on a ranch so what better to do than turn the ranch into a riding stable for paralyzed children. Julie knew after reading this book that opening a place like this was "her calling." At the time, Julie’s husband was a veterinarian, and they lived in Plano, Ky. Julie pretty much just booted her husband out of his office and took over it to pursue her dream. (a lady has to do what a lady has to do to make her dreams come true right?) So, on their 25 acres of land, with three horses, three riders, and 20 volunteers, she began bringing her dream to life.
In 2009, Michele Vise was seeking direction in life after the passing of her husband in the previous year. She had worked the corporate life for years and wasn’t sure that she wanted to go back there. Yes, she made good money in that, but this wasn't about the money. She had thought about moving back to Lexington, where she is originally from, but her heart was telling her otherwise. While flipping through a local magazine, she came across an advertisement for New Beginnings. Michele had grown up around horses and ridden them all her life. She felt the calling to volunteer at the facility and began exercising horses for Julie. Things fell right into place, and Michele fell in love not only with the facility but with Julie and her family. They asked her to join their extended family at New Beginnings, so Michele began writing grants, organizing fundraisers and all the other necessary task it takes to keep a nonprofit organization like this going. She is now the Executive Director of the facility.

Julie worked endless hours to bring the facility to higher standards. She got them up to a Premier Accredited Center through  PATH (Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship). This is a governing organization that focuses on equine assisted activities and therapies for individuals with special needs. Being a PATH facility requires that you meet and uphold their many rules and regulations. There are only three other facilities with this accreditation in the state of Kentucky. As Michele put it so well “it’s a way to make people see that this facility is a very reputable organization and not just a backyard operation with horses and just gives pony rides.” 
When New Beginnings first got up and running, they only operated 25 weeks out of the year. There was only the opportunity for an outside facility, so they could not offer classes during winter months. Since that time, a new facility has been purchased, and they now operate 40 weeks out of the year and have an amazing inside facility that is equipped with a wheelchair ramp, a lift, a riding arena and everything required to offer classes indoors. The facility currently has 25 students active, but this will increase to 60 plus as the weather improves Michele stated. The ages range from 5 and up. In the 21 years of being in business, their oldest student was 80, how amazing is that? 

There are so many disabilities that are seen here at New Beginnings. Just to name a few; spina bifida, wheelchair bound folks, mental disorders, emotional disorders, physical disorders and OCD.  Michele stated that autistic people thrive in this environment. She gave me an example of one of the autistic students that are completely nonverbal. The only way to communicate with him is with a sheet of paper.  When he arrives, the horse is set up with all the riding tack on and ready to go. When he began riding,  he would only ride once a week and had three volunteers (two focused on the rider (side walkers) and one focused on the horse (horse leader). He has conquered so many obstacles during his time at New Beginnings; for instance, he started out only riding once a week, he now rides twice a week and now only needs one volunteer. At the beginning he didn't want to be around a lot of people and didn't like the loud noises, certain doors had to be closed..these are not near as challenging for him as they once were. The levels that this student has graduated to is just a miracle in itself. The strength and confidence speak volumes about how wonderful the volunteers are and what a difference it has made in this specific person’s life.

During my visit, I had the pleasure of meeting Kristan. She has been a student at New Beginnings for two years now. She moved here from New Mexico. What an incredibly sweet lady! She had worked with another PATH center, and they transferred her records when she moved to Bowling Green.  She is very much the equestrian, very independent (and a little on the sassy side I do believe). I will tell you, Kristan got on that horse and she owned it. It was so heartwarming to stand and watch her ride. You couldn't wipe the smile off her adorable face.  Kristan also works at the Warren Co. Humane Society.
So you love horses, you have the heart for people with disabilities, so you think you can be a volunteer here? A much-misconceived thought is that some think that if they love horses and ride horses, that they love people with disabilities, they can be a volunteer at New Beginnings. It is not that simple. Volunteering at this facility is an education process. Yes, you have to know horsemanship, but you also have to know disabilities and what all is involved with each one. I love the way Michele put it “you have to marriage those two things together.” As much as they love people that want to volunteer to work with the students, it is a process that is taken very seriously.
Just like in school, each student has a lesson plan specifically designed for them and their disability. Each lesson plan is based off a packet that is signed off on by the student's physician and their therapist. Each volunteer for that student has to be involved with this because the lesson plan is based on this information. There is so much more to this than I ever imagined. Volunteering at New Beginnings has to come from the heart because you have to give it your all to make a difference in these people’s lives. The volunteers have to be able to utilize communication with parents/ guardians to see what kind of day that student is having that day. There may be days that the lesson plan has to be tweaked, or even just thrown out the window on that specific day due to that person having a bad day.
The facility is now up to 150 volunteers. These range from board members, feeding crew, maintenance people, horse leaders, side walkers, people to help with a fundraiser and numerous others. Everyone has to work together, and there are no “specific jobs” assigned, everyone has to work together as a team. I hear so much in the business world “that’s not my job” well, in this case, that phrase cannot be used if you are going to be a volunteer. It's completely a team effort.

I asked Michele about the cost of each student to attend riding classes here. Some students do pay, (which is something I wasn't sure of) it's a $30 fee to ride for 45 minutes. Understandably, they don't want to turn anyone away so they have scholarship programs which are determined based on income levels. This allows more students to be added to the program. With this being a nonprofit organization, it relies solely on fundraisers and grants.
I asked Michele where Julie was now and if she is still involved in New Beginnings. Julie and her husband moved to Frankfort 5 years ago. But she is so motivational to New Beginnings. Michele knows she can pick up the phone and call her at any time for anything.  Michele contributed so much to Julie and the strong faith in how she saw that program. They (Michele and Julie) talk a lot about how God had laid the path for Julie. Julie often referred to bible verse James 1:17 "every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."  Michele shared with me the day she knew God was guiding her to New Beginnings. "I came down the road and was facing the barn here on the property, and this amazing light came over the barn. Grant it, the sun was shining, but it was different, it was immaculate, and I know it was my sign from God saying this is where I need to be." 

As Michele took me on a tour of their inside facility, she discussed the horses with me and the importance of choosing the right horses for their program. Needless to say, without good horses, they wouldn't be able to even have this facility. The horses have to be healthy and happy, or things can go bad quickly with a rider. Michele said so many people have the idea that they can take just any horse, but that is far from correct. There is no horsing around (like that pun?) when it comes to choosing horses for the riders.  They put the horses through a series of tests to see if they can handle loud noises, lots of people around and other crazy distractions that might take place. Michele said they had rescued a couple of horses, they have one horse that was a race horse, and even some that are former barrel racers. Each horse recognizes each person for who they are. The staff puts the horses through a training session. A lot of screaming and beating the walls to see their reaction. They have 11 horses currently. "It's nothing less than beautiful to see the horses interact with the students", Michele said.
I was fortunate enough to get to meet Edger Gonzoles, one of the volunteers that helps keep the barn and land looking good. He is a senior at Bowling Green High School. He has a scholarship to Western Kentucky University and plans to major in nursing. He said the reason he wanted to volunteer at New Beginnings is because he loves nature and helping others. He sounds like a very busy man due to the fact not only does he go to school, he volunteers here and works two other jobs.
If you will notice in one of the pictures posted, the logo Julie chose for New Beginnings is "All About Abilities". This program does not focus on what you cannot do because you have a disability, it completely focuses on what you can do in spite of that disability. I've said all my life; people tend to look at disabled people as just that, handicapped. But I look at them as handi-capable!
It was such an uplifting experience to see the commitment made by Michele and her staff. It is obvious to me that God planned to have Michele take control of the reins when Julie moved to Frankfort. God has a plan for everyone's life when they are born, it is up to each individual to fulfill that plan. What a difference this facility has made through the years in the lives of so many people.