Exciting Equine Adventures from Hannibal to Harrisburg
We offer equine riding sessions to all foster and adoptive families throughout mid-Missouri. This year, Jennifer Cerretti, our Hannibal Family Advocate, thought it would be a cool experience if Hannibal families could participate together.
It’s about a two hour drive from Hannibal to our Harrisburg Foster Care Community. After Brittany McCaskey, our Area Coordinator, communicated with Hannibal families, four girls in our Hannibal area signed up for a Tuesday equine session.
Everyone meets at the Hannibal office and packs up a cooler with snacks and supplies for a picnic lunch. Everyone loads up into the car. One child will pray over their trip and the day together, and then everyone sticks their hands in for a team cheer.
Together, everyone chants, “1 . . . 2 . . . 3 . . . my little pony!” And then they set off for Harrisburg!
When they arrive, everyone grabs their gear and gets started with their horses. Our equine riding sessions have a familiar rhythm each week: children brush their horses, clean their hooves, and saddle them with the supervision of a wrangler or equine specialist. Then, they ride their horses around the arena. Afterwards, they clean up and brush their horses again.
After riding together, everyone goes to the playground at Cathy’s Home or to the pavilion by the lake. They eat lunch together and play for a while before heading back to Hannibal.
“We’ve had a lot of lessons learned over tetherball,” Jennifer said. “One of the girls went down a fireman’s pole on the playground for the first time, so we learned how tough she is.”
Jennifer shared that one of the unexpected things about this group is how special their trips together have been.
From pulling over on the side of a gravel road to chase after a turtle to a song written about Pablo, one girl’s horse, this crew has made great memories together this summer.
One memory that sticks out the most is the growth Jennifer has seen in a six-year-old, Lauren.*
“During her first week, you could tell that it would be challenging,” Jennifer said. “She didn’t have any confidence with brushing, or cleaning hooves. She didn’t quite have an understanding of what to do. The next week, she was a little more confident, but the knowledge wasn’t there yet. Every week, I see her completely grow in confidence. Last week, she worked hard to groom her horse and be thorough.”
Brenda, one of our wranglers, leads Lauren’s horse around the arena. This past week, Brenda unhooked the lead. When Lauren realized what happened, she called out to the rest of the group.
“I heard her say, ‘I’m doing it! I’m doing it!'” Jennifer said. “You could just see her beaming. It was cool to see her call out to the other girls. It was like she was saying, Join me in this excitement!”
Lauren’s foster mother, Kenna, has also witnessed a lot of growth while she has participated in this equine session.
“Lauren loves horses and was so excited for this [experience],” Kenna shared. “We had to count down sleeps for 50 days until it started, and then every week for the next session. It was great math practice! She has loved the horses and the friends she made. I think it was great for her to do something independently of our family or school to build these other safe connections in her life.”
Kenna also shared that Lauren has grown in confidence outside of Overton Arena as well.
“While Lauren loves horses, she previously was too scared to ride the little pony at a petting zoo. Afterwards, she was upset that she didn’t get to do it. She usually gets scared of doing things in the beginning, but we give her lots of experiences doing different things to show she can. Every night, we tell her she is smart, safe, and brave. This is her own little affirmation she uses to remind herself she can do it. Throughout this [equine session], she started adding in herself that she is strong.”
*Name changed for confidentiality.
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