Spring riding sessions have begun and Evangeline Smith is filled with excitement.
She’s been taking therapeutic riding lessons for the past five years through the Manitoba Riding for the Disabled Association (MRDA), an organization has been helping children for more than 4 decades.
“There’s not very many sports she can do. This is one thing. It’s her thing. It’s her independence,” Evangeline’s mother Tracy Smith said.
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Evangeline has William’s Syndrome, which affects her core strength. Her mom said she has seen huge physical improvements in her daughter’s balance and ability to walk since working with MRDA.
“We’ve had kids progress from wheelchairs to independent walkers. We’ve had kids say their first words which is amazing,” Sarah-Michelle Senecal, a therapist and instructor at MRDA said.
Senecal first signed-up to volunteer five years ago.
She’s among 100 volunteers involved in the program. The only paid position is the Executive Director.
“You watch them grow through the sessions and graduate. It’s an amazing experience to be part of it all,” Wendy Elcomb, who’s been volunteering for 15 years with MRDA said.
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A program like this relies heavily on many volunteers. In addition to instructors and therapists, three volunteers are needed for every rider. One to lead the horse and two side-walkers to support the child.
Watching the children experience riding the horses is a huge part of what keeps volunteers like Wendy coming back year after year.
“When it’s good for your soul and it makes you feel so incredibly good being with the horses and watching the children, how can you not.”
Manitoba Riding for the Disabled Association celebrated it’s 40th anniversary in June 2017 and is being recognized at the 2018 Volunteer Manitoba Award dinner in a video tribute.