Rainier Therapeutic Riding provides basic horsemanship lessons to injured military personnel at three arenas in the Yelm, WA area. Having operated for nearly two years, they are already the largest provider of equine therapy to military personnel in the country. According to their website, they are currently serving 48 soldiers weekly, and have over 50 active volunteers and 3 certified instructors, along with 14 privately owned/leased horses.
Rainier Therapeutic Riding helping the injured
Soldiers come to RTR from a very dark mental place, and the relationship they build with their horse leads them back to a joy for living.
Rainier Therapeutic Riding works directly with medical military personnel attached to the Army Warrior Transition Battalion and Air Force Medical Flight at Joint Base Lewis McChord to select active duty soldiers suffering from Suicidal tendencies, Post Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injury, as well as a host of other injuries. These soldiers come to RTR from a very dark mental place, and the relationship they build with “their” horse leads them back to a joy for living.
Now Mark Bolender and Bolender Horse Park are partnering with the nonprofit organization to raise money and awareness for RTR’s mission: to provide equine assisted therapy to active and retired soldiers suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), and other physical or emotional challenges.
Bolender is a star in the equestrian sport of Mountain Trail and Extreme Trail. In fact, he’s the National Grand Champion. Enthusiasts are training across North America and Europe because it’s catching on fast. It requires special training because some trail obstacles that horse and rider must navigate are extremely difficult, and some look downright impossible. But when properly trained, horse and rider appear as one individual, moving through obstacles with finesse and fluidity; it’s a remarkable sight.
RTR provides a relatively new treatment modality that started pilots in Texas and Virginia in 2007. Giving wounded soldiers the chance to communicate with, ride, and train a horse is therapeutic because horseback riding mimics the human locomotion. Over 30% of service men and women returning from battle deployments are diagnosed with PTSD, and those who participate in RTR’s program get a tremendous feeling of accomplishment.
Eight Horse Shows are scheduled to raise awareness of RTR’s cause. The eighth and final Show will be held on September 15, 2012 at Bolender Horse Park in Silver Creek, WA. It’s called “Bolender’s Mountain Trail Challenge to Support Rainier Therapeutic Riding”. Generous donations of buckle awards are given by Tracy and Bob Stout from Sky Hawk Ranch (Redmond, OR). Mare Magic of Shelton, WA also donated beautiful ribbons for the event.
Since RTR’s goal is to move soldiers into trail riding, who better to train them than Mark Bolender? He says the therapeutic advantage of a soldier partnering with a horse, learning to apply themselves physically, and accomplishing difficult tasks is irreplaceable to helping their bodies and minds. Bolender says, “And it’s the very least we can do for our heroes.”