Horse Wish is a Non-Profit organization with the mandate of providing a “Horse Life Experience” to individuals who otherwise could not afford it.

To Touch a Horse
To Ride a Horse
To Love a Horse
That’s a “Horse Life Experience”

Horse Wish to share a little ‘heaven on horseback’

(WOODVILLE) For Susan Wilson, heaven can be described as riding on the massive back of an elegant horse, hair flowing in the wind, feeling the rhythmic beat of each stride through your entire being.

“When you get on a horse and it’s moving, everything else is quiet in your head. I call it heaven on horseback,” she said. Ms Wilson credits her favourite mare, Sonny Girl, with getting her through some tough emotional times a few years ago and believes that many others could benefit from a little horse therapy.

“Through my own experience I’ve learned that being around horses can really empower you,” she said. “I think when you have something you can focus on externally, it can really help you grow and move on.”

Ms Wilson is the owner of Wilson H2 Ranch in Woodville, the epicentre of Horse Wish, a non-profit organization designed to expose people to the pleasures of being around horses, particularly those who would otherwise not have the opportunity.

For adults and children, the group looks to partner with local organizations like the Boys and Girls Clubs, Women’s Resources, Veteran’s Affairs and the YMCA to identify people who could benefit this kind of pastime.

Vice-president Benjamin Guy also knows first hand what benefits being around horses can bring. After travelling all over the world with the military and spending more than 60 months out of the country, Mr. Guy said he came home looking for a little horse therapy and got back into cowboying and bull riding out west before settling in Lindsay.

“I know just from being around military guys that have developed a lot of issues, if you can find someone or something you can be responsible for and look out for, it starts to help you feel better about yourself and what you’ve had to do,” he said. “The best thing for the inside of a man is the outside of a horse.”

He added that he can see benefits far beyond helping cope with emotional issues. For example, he said he can see great benefits for kids going to camp or being exposed to horses, learning about taking care of something else, in keeping them out of trouble.

As a young girl, Horse Wish president Lori Arksey was always mesmerized by horses and wanted to take riding lessons, but due to financial constraints was never able to fulfill her dream.

“The sheer beauty of the animal is what got me first. They want nothing and give you everything and the bond of trust.” Now with two daughters of her own who have taken riding lessons, Ms Arksey said she sees the difference it can make in someone’s life and the difference it has made to her just spending time in the barn, around horses.

“Just a glimmer of sunlight can make a world of difference,” she said.  “There is so much negativity in the world, just to bring some spark of hope and maybe turn someone’s life around. We’ve got great hopes to help a lot of people.” she added later of her goal for Horse Wish.

“The concept of Horse Wish just came out from conversations of people explaining in their own words how horses have effected heir lives,” said John Kor, who is in charge of marketing and business development for the new non-profit.

Ms Wilson, the 2008 Canadian Amateur Reining Champion and her daughter, Leah Taylor, have been instrumental in developing Horse Wish Summer Camps, with part of the proceeds going to Horse Wish.  Horse Wish organizers are also continuously looking for volunteers and companies to help support providing ‘a horse life experiences’ to those who are disadvantaged.

“We’re new, we’re young and we need some help,” he said. “With the kind of events we want to pull off, we will certainly need a lot of help.”

For more information, contact KorStrategies@gmail.com.

The sky is the limit for this organization, said Mr. Kor, who said Horse Wish will start with local initiatives with the goal to expand first provincially and then nationally.

Excerpted from a newspaper article by:   Barbara-Ann MacEachern