Special Equestrians, Inc.
Making Miracles Happen
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
In expanding our programs and services, it has been difficult to keep up with the volunteer needs of our organization. We are working hard towards increasing our volunteer base to service the expansion of our organization.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Special Equestrians, Equine Assisted Activities and Therapies
Established in 1987 by the Fort Myers Kiwanis Club, Special Equestrians began their program using borrowed horses. We now serve over 95 participants with disabilities each week with sessions offered four days a week. Participants learn how to ride horses, drive a cart pulled by one of our horses or learn ground activities. There are many therapeutic benefits achieved with learning these equestrians skills. Special Equestrians also has an unmounted Veterans Program which began in 2019.
Participants from the age of four to ninety-seven have participated in Special Equestrians. The disablilities of our riders have included: Cerebral Palsy, Down's Syndrome, Autism, Head Injury, Stroke, Vision and Hearing Impairment, Developmental Delay, Multiple Sclerosis and many other disabilities. The fee for a six week session is $90. The program is year-round with the exception of one month in the summer.
Where we work
Awards
Premier Accredited Center (Accreditation) 2019
Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International (PATH Int'l)
Affiliations & memberships
Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International 2017
United Way Member Agency 2017
Chamber of Commerce 2017
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsNumber of children and adults served during each week with therapeutic horsemanship classes.
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with disabilities
Related Program
Special Equestrians, Equine Assisted Activities and Therapies
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Special Equestrians offers therapeutic horseback riding, therapeutic carriage driving classes and equine assisted activities and therapies to persons with disabilities and to veterans.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
As a nonprofit organization offering equine assisted activities and therapies to persons with disabilities, our goal is to enhance the lives of our participants, cognitively, physically and socially, in a safe environment.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Special Equestrians, Inc. uses equines as a tool for our learning environment. Lessons may be mounted or unmounted, with learning taking place in each type of setting.
We have therapeutic riding classes set up for four days of the week, 33 weeks of the year. During the therapeutic riding, classes are taught by PATH Intl. certified instructors.
We also have a therapeutic carriage driving program taught by a PATH Intl. certified driving instructor. These classes will be offered during the late fall, winter, and early spring.
In 2012, Special Partners became another service we offered. A few of the program equines were certified in animal assisted activities. They are able to go to schools, assisted living facilities and other nonprofits to give the children and adults an opportunity to meet, pet and brush a horse. We also offer them the opportunity to participate in our literacy program.
In 2017, Special Equestrians began offering occupational therapy services using hippotherapy as a treatment modality.
In 2019, we began offering an unmounted Veterans Program. Veterans choose one of our program horses, learning to brush them, lead them and partner with their horse.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Special Equestrians, Inc. is located on property that is owned by our organization. It was purchased in 2007 and at this time, our property is approximately 15 acres. At our facility, we have two areas for our classes, one is a covered riding arena and the other is a Sensory Integration Trail.
In order to run our organization, we need many volunteers to make it all happen. At this time, we have approximately 200 volunteers who give their time to volunteer at Special Equestrians. Our volunteers give with their whole hears and we could not offer our programs without their volunteer service.
Our classes and programs are all taught and facilitated by certified riding instructors who are associated with PATH Intl., The Professional Association for Therapeutic Horsemanship. We are a Premier Accredited Center, which means that we must follow the standards set forth by PATH Intl. Every 5 years, we must go through re-accreditation. We have retained this distinction since 2005.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We have accomplished so much since our beginnings in 1987. We have our own property with a 12 stall horse barn, caretaker home, office, covered riding arena, sensory integration trail, new pasture land for our equine, an outreach program, 4 paid instructors and 4 volunteer instructors, our own drill team made up of our independent riders, a dedicated board of directors and the distinction since 2005 of being a Premier Accredited Center with the Professional Association for Therapeutic Horsemanship.
Special Equestrians, Inc. is debt-free at this time. In 2013, we were able to pay off our property mortgage.
We have added additional services such as hippotherapy, therapeutic carriage driving lessons, and a Veteran's program. Our carriage driving instructor has begun the driving classes. We also have an occupational therapist who is a PATH certified therapist for hippotherapy. She has been offering her OT services in this area since 2017.
Our veterans program has been well received. We would like to expand this program to add more veterans who can participate in this wonderful groundwork program.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Special Equestrians, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 08/12/2024
Freda Jones
Raymond Building Supply
Term: 2023 - 2024
Freda Jones
Raymond Building Supply
Erin Houck-Toll
Henderson, Franklin, Starnes & Holt, P.A.
Jan Fifer
Special Equestrians, Inc.
Brenda Morrow
Forrester, Hart, Belisle & Whitaker, PL.
Erica Johnson
Dorcey Law Firm
Sarah Poindexter
Strides OT
Chris Baker
Medial Device Sales Representative
Karen Cooney
Enrolled Agent/Accountant
Tom Feurig
Management Consultant
Adele Smith
Retired FIU Admin
Kendra Sutton
Marketing and Sales Consultant
Dana Hollenzer
Special Equestrians, Inc.
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
No data
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
No data