Welcome to Mountin’ Hopes!
We are a Therapeutic Riding Center in Western North Carolina. We provide horseback riding to people of all ages with physical, neurological and cognitive differences.
Our mission is to embrace the unique gifts and challenges of each individual, encouraging personal growth through the horse and human relationship
Volunteers are the heart and soul of Mountin’ Hopes and their commitment and enthusiasm assist in everything that we do. There are a variety of volunteer opportunities, based on your particular talents and interests.
News & Rider Stories:
Two Very Different Riders
Hi. I’m Laura, the new Director of Mountin’ Hopes and I observed some riders and wanted to share my thoughts. See the pictures above.
It’s a cold, but incredibly beautiful Saturday at “Horse Sense”, which is our temporary location in the mountains north of Asheville. My first thought was one of gratitude for us being able to continue our program in this breathtaking location after selling our farm in Mars Hill. The facilities are well designed and include two enclosed arenas and an outside riding ring.
The first riders were so very different in age and physical challenges but they were the same in their love and enjoyment of the horses and riding. The younger rider had been riding with us for a number of years and her physical challenges were not severe. A volunteer was needed to lead her horse but she did not need any sidewalkers because she had good balance and physical capabilities. (Sidewalkers are volunteers who walk on either side of the horse to ensure the riders safety.)
The adult rider was deaf, could not speak and had other challenges. Her sign language translator accompanied her. She needed a lot of help mounting the horse from the platform and needed a horse leader, 2 sidewalkers and her translator.
The lesson started out with Anne Westall, the riding instructor, leading them in stretching exercises. You can see one picture with both riders raising their hands and they are in the outside riding ring and it looks like they are riding in the sky. You can almost feel their happiness in being able to be on these big, physically powerful horses. However, the differences between the riders was evident by just looking at the number of people needed for each rider to make this a safe experience.
The younger rider was given directions for a pattern to follow and the adult rider followed along. This included circling around cones, stopping at specific points and riding over poles. The adult rider was on a special saddle and was also able to turn herself around so that she could ride sidesaddle.
My thoughts not only included the awareness of how we all may have emotional, physical and mental challenges but they can run the full gamit from mild to very severe. But we all want the same things, we want to feel loved, safe and happy. I also thought about riding my horses and the joy that it brings to my life.
I believe that Mountin’ Hopes offers our riders an opportunity to have some fun, be happy and feel safe at the same time they are improving their well being by gaining more balance and physical strength, and increasing their concentration, ability to follow directions and interpersonal skills.
Everyone at Mountin’ Hopes is looking forward to increasing the number of riders in 2012 which means that we need to increase our number of volunteers and donations. We hope to expand our programs and offer some specifically for veterans. We welcome you all to come out and visit! We are all counting our blessings and wishing you all health and happiness in 2012!
Annual Board Meeting 2011
Mountin’ Hopes had its annual Board meeting on November 28th, 2011. The activities for the current year were reviewed including the sale of the Mountin’ Hopes property in Mars Hill. The Board of Directors recognizes the fact that about 2/3 of all Mountin’ Hopes revenue needs to come from outside sources, including grants, donations and fundraisers. We have a large number of riders who are on scholarship and we want to continue to be able to do this for our riders.
The strategy for 2012 includes:
- Having Spring and Summer riding sessions in Marshall and Mills River
- Increasing the number of riders, volunteers and instructors
- The Board of Directors will focus on Fund Raising and recruiting new Board members
- The Planning committee looking into options for buying a smaller farm, taking advantage of long-term lease options or expanding to other locations.
- Having Laura Nelson as the Executive Director (Part-time)
- Here is the presentation by Mountin’ Hopes Annual Meeting 2011
We look forward to an exciting and joyful experience for everyone at Mountin’ Hopes in 2012 and beyond!
