Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our community is in a state of disconnect. We want to support schools, organizations and collectives in coming back to connection and love. At the farm we quickly get to a point of connection where people are willing to be vulnerable and honest about how they have been doing and what they need to get better. Everyone has feelings or thoughts that they need to work through, this farm and its animals create a space where its okay to open up about it. When people become empowered to create goals for themselves in their own lives, with out even know it, they start to enrich the lives of everyone around them. We are a small organization, with big goals to help our community, even if it is just helping one person or family at a time. Unbridled Spirit has a team of motivated staff, volunteers and of course horses to help us with this mission.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Middle and High School Programs
In our school programming, students come for a specific amount of weeks ranging from 8 to 10 week programs. In these programs the same students come each week, the first week they get to know their mentors and facilitators and also choose a horse to build a relationship with, they will also be assigned a mentor who will also stay with them the entire program. Through out the program, student, mentor and horse get to know one another by grooming the horse and talking about trust. We progress through many different growth lessons, eventually riding their horse! At our farm we work hard to build the relationship with the horse before riding them. We talk about supportive healthy relationships, self care, emotional wellness and self understanding. By the end of the program, students understand their emotions better, they have learned some self care skills to take with them and they have created a trusting supportive relationship with a horse and mentor.
Elementary School Programs
This program is designed for elementary school students to learn about horses, develop self-care skills, and build supportive relationships. The program is 8 to 10 weeks long and meets once a week for 2 hours.
Goals:
To teach students about horses, including their care and handling
To help students develop self-care skills, such as grooming and tacking up a horse
To help students build supportive relationships with horses and mentors
To teach students about emotional wellness and self-understanding
Students will learn about horses and develop a love of animals
Students will develop self-care skills that will benefit them throughout their lives
Students will build supportive relationships with horses and mentors
Students will learn about emotional wellness and self-understanding
Where we work
External reviews
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of youth receiving services (e.g., groups, skills and job training, etc.) with youths living in their community
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Families, Non-adult children, Parents, Indigenous peoples, Multiracial people
Related Program
Middle and High School Programs
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Goals & Strategy
Learn 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?
We want to create a compassionate and equitable environment where people have an innate sense of belonging, a connection to nature and can achieve mental, spiritual, and social well-being.
Our goal is to support people and families with their emotional wellness.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Continuing to share our mission with the community and invite schools and groups to our farm to create a space for connection and peace.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We have a talented team of Facilitators and Mentors who are passionate about providing meaningful programming. Our team of therapy horses are incredible, they show up emotionally for these participants on a regular basis, always excited to see what they may be able to accomplish together. We have a Mental Health Counselor who also facilitates and supports mentors when and if they need assistance. Our team of Equine Specialists are prepared and ready to support the people and animals, making sure everyone is comfortable and safe when working together.
Together we facilitate goal setting, self reflection, communication and relationship support with the guidance of our amazing human and animal teams.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Unbridled Spirit has had a very productive first two years. We are proud to share the following collaborations :
Check out our website for updates: https://www.unbridledspirit7.org/about-1
Lummi Nation Day Camp: 2021, 2022 and 2023
Lummi Nation School Trips: Fall of 2022, Teacher Retreat Spring 2022
Happy Valley School Trips: Spring 2023
Northern Heights: Weekly School Programming 2022-2023 & 2023-2024
Whatcom Intergenerational High School: Weekly School Programming 2022 - 2023
All School Farm Event Fall 2022
Teacher Retreat Farm Event Fall 2021
Explorations High School: Teacher Retreat Spring 2021 & Weekly School Programming 2023 - 2024
WCEE (Whatcom Coalition of Environmental Educators): Farm Networking Event Spring 2023
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 identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, 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 aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time
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
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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.
Unbridled Spirit 7
Board of directorsas of 01/29/2024
Sierra James
Joni Hensley
Joni Hensley
Paul James
Grad Student - Seattle University
Sally Majkut
Nancy Orlowski
Karabo Breeding
Student
Niko Branek
Student - Rhodes College
Rae Rodriguez
ACH
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:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
We do not display disability information for organizations with fewer than 15 staff.
Equity strategies
Last updated: 11/28/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.