This Pasco nonprofit uses horses to help the disabled. Veterans could be next
Sofia Martinez loves to ride horses.
For the 16-year-old Prosser girl, it's fun and freeing.
She has Batten Disease, a genetic condition that causes seizures, cognitive impairment and loss of vision and motor function.
But when she's around horses, she lights up.
"She looks forward to it each week," said her mom, René.
Luckily, Therapeutic Riding of Tri-Cities, or TROT, is offering a new class this summer, so Sofia won't have to wait until riding sessions resume in the fall to get her TROT fix. Riding therapy takes a break in the summer because it gets too hot in the outdoor arena.
The new Horse 101 class — which teaches the basics of horsemanship — is underway, and it's not too late to sign up.
Sessions are 9 to 10:30 a.m. Mondays through July 2.
The current session is for disabled youth and adults. But the plan is to eventually expand to other populations, including veterans, people dealing with mental illness and sex trafficking victims, said Cynthia MacFarlan, TROT founder.
It's a non-riding class, with participants instead learning about how to manage and care for a horse — all the while building relationships with each other, working on communication and having plenty of fun.
It's a good stepping stone to TROT's riding sessions, MacFarlan said. It's also good for participants like Sofia, who already have some horse experience but want to stay active and connected, she said.
TROT offers therapeutic riding, plus one-on-one hippotherapy — a therapy strategy that uses equine movement — and also dog therapy. The Horse 101 class is a newer addition to its inventory of services.
MacFarlan, who worked for 30 years as a speech and language pathologist, started TROT in 2014.
The nonprofit has certifications from the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship and the American Hippotherapy Association. Along with MacFarlan, the TROT crew includes riding instructors, therapists and other volunteers.
The benefits of equine therapy are myriad, MacFarlan said. She told stories of largely non-verbal participants speaking up in a purposeful way around the horses, of riders with physical limitations loosening up and making gains.
"There’s magic that happens every time a class takes place," she said.
Sofia is excited about Horse 101. Her mother is, too.
"Being at TROT means a lot to Sofia because there are a lot of activities that she can’t do, because of her limitations. It’s just such a blessing to have TROT available," René Martinez said.
Horse 101 costs $60. Additional sessions also are planned later in the summer and fall.
For more on TROT, call 509-412-0112 or go to trot3cities.org.
This story was originally published June 14, 2018 at 4:49 PM with the headline "This Pasco nonprofit uses horses to help the disabled. Veterans could be next."