SNOHOMISH COUNTY — At these classes, confidence develops on top of a quarterhorse.
Courageous Connections is a nonprofit organization in Tulalip that helps people with Down syndrome, autism and other sensory processing disorders to benefit from horse encounters. Horses can be quite useful in providing therapeutic experiences for people of many different abilities.
Kathy Sanders said the idea for the organization came up in a discussion with her co-founder and cousin Sue Eulau while on a trail ride. The two of them realized they had a similar vision and soon hit the ground running.
“Once that spark kind of got ignited for me I’m just a little bit of Type A personality and it was pedal to the metal, let’s go,” said Sanders, who quipped she’s been “horse crazy all of her life.” They started offering classes in the summer of 2018 after Sanders became trained and certified through the like-minded Little Bits organization in Redmond.
Courageous Connections offers both unmounted and riding experiences. The unmounted classes are about interacting and becoming comfortable with horses. Sanders said that not allowing a big 1,000 pound horse to be intimidating or push them around helps teach kids life lessons about boundaries and personal bubbles.
Molly Pappas, 14, of Everett, takes pride in showing pictures of her riding a horse to people
at her high school. She said besides liking the horse Silver and some of the games they play during class, she really enjoys working with James McDaniels, one of the volunteers.
Molly has Down syndrome and began attending classes last summer. Her mother Bonnie said in addition to being excited about the horses, she’s noticed that what Molly is learning about confidence and core strength at Courageous Connections carries over outside of class and as a result she has been more social, too.
The riding classes take place in six week blocks and meet on Saturday mornings during the school year and Tuesdays for the summer. There are two 45-minute classes on those days and the students are each flanked by three volunteers for safety. One is to help with the leading rope on the horse while the other two are side walkers helping to hold and brace the rider’s legs.
Sanders said these sessions help not only with the mechanics of mounting and riding a horse, but also act as a confidence booster for a lot of students.
One of the biggest challenges is getting volunteers committed for each whole six-week session, Sanders said. Some volunteers have been helping her long-term while others come and go. Courageous Connections is listed on VolunteerMatch.com and one of the local 4-H clubs also helps out because the kids are familiar with horses and receive community service credit required by the club.
Samantha Chapman, of Everett, began volunteering with the group this spring because she wanted to do something outdoors that’s different from her weekday desk job in communications. Even though she didn’t have experience with horses, she was intrigued by the idea of working with both them and kids.
She enjoys meeting different types of people and believes she’s taking away a lot of new communication skills from these classes. “I love that because it is a smaller nonprofit, it really has a family feel to it,” Chapman said. “Everybody knows each other and it’s just a really fun atmosphere to be around.”
Courageous Connections is having a “Fun at the Farm” family afternoon on June 30 that will also operate as a fundraiser. The event will be at Cedarbrook Farms, 9812 215th Ave. SE in Snohomish. The cost is $10 per family and will offer games, pony rides, pictures and a silent auction.
Sanders said the two main purposes in doing the fundraiser is to get their name out there and also potentially provide students with scholarships. The classes cost $75 each per six-week session and while her organization can work out payment plans, they do require attendees to sign up for the entire session.
“We really need scholarships to get more people in it that can’t afford it,” she said. Sanders believes that more people can benefit from the therapeutic benefits of being around horses.
Barb Stavig has been volunteering at Courageous Connections since the beginning. Being able to help and witness the various people’s reactions keep her coming back.
“The very first time I was there I didn’t expect it, the joy that was on their face and how happy and excited they were. You know, it just really warmed my heart right away,” Stavig said.
Bonnie Pappas was a little hesitant about Molly being thrust into the vulnerability of a new situation when her daughter first wanted to attend the classes. But she’s happy they did and enjoys how everyone at Courageous Connections is patient and always makes Molly feel accepted and included.
Molly has progressed from being slightly afraid of the horses at her first class to now beaming while riding Silver each week.
“Whatever that feeling is I wish that I knew it verbatim by word, but I don’t,” Bonnie Pappas said. “I just know that she wears the biggest smile when she gets there and can’t wait to get started.”
Learn more
If you want to reach out to Courageous Connections, visit www.courageous-connections.org
Photo courtesy Samantha Chapman
Above: A participant at Courageous Connections leads a horse together with volunteers.
