BARN AT SPRING BROOK FARM INC

Program Goals
At the core of our mission is our capacity to continue to offer the unique and effective programs for which we have become known. Our Strategic Plan (2016-2019) underscores our commitment to further strengthening our organization's financial health and governance by increasing individual, foundation and corporate funding sources, and expanding our Board of Directors in number, expertise and diversity. We also continue to focus on evolving our programming to maximize the impact we can have of the lives of the children, including:
• Maximizing the number of children who participate in our Individual Programs
• Adding new sensory activities and socialization opportunities into our Individual Programs
• Increasing our staff as fundraising allows to including Master's Degree level interns and Special Education Teachers to serve consistently throughout the six weeks of Camp Geronimo.
• Developing more educational and support opportunities for parents and families of the children we serve.
• Expanding public awareness of our programs through outreach, partnerships and attendance at local events.

The Barn itself, a reproduction bank barn built on the property at our founder's personal expense, is fully handicapped-accessible; all areas of The Barn were constructed with the special needs of the children in mind. Within The Barn are stalls, feed and tack rooms, bathrooms, and upper and lower levels. Outside The Barn, a specially-designed wheelchair-accessible hay wagon provides trips around the property and a handicapped-accessible tree house beautifully built by volunteers offers a peaceful place for children to spend time in nature. The Barn offers our participating children a truly distinctive experience. No other place in Chester County, or more broadly in the Greater Philadelphia Region, has the same type of programming. Our impact on the community, therefore, is far reaching. We provide a niche opportunity for every child who comes to The Barn. Each of our signature programs provide an unmatched degree of individual attention and activities designed to advance the health, development and wellbeing of the children. Our programs provide:
• Children with disabilities the opportunity to improve motor skills and muscle development as a result of grooming animals and taking them for walks around the property.
• Children who have difficulty interacting with others the chance to enhance socialization thanks to repeated eye contact with animals and practicing basic introduction skills.
• Children with autism the opportunity to reach higher levels of task management and mental alertness by focusing on specific tasks such as feeding the animals.
Each child is unique in personality, needs and goals. However, all children experience The Barn's beautiful, engaging, peaceful and fun environment, where evidence-based progress is made by allowing them to enjoy and grow from the same types of experience available to other children.

Founded in 2006, our organization has continually grown in the numbers of children we serve, the scope and breadth of our programming, depth of our staff experience and in our network of partners and volunteers. Our greatest asset is the experience of our staff which includes:
• Nan Latona, Executive Director, has served in this capacity since May, 2019 and is responsible for the execution of the organization's mission and for the oversight of all operations, program development, fundraising, budgeting and communications. She has extensive experience in business development and fundraising, executive management, financial management and budgeting.
• Annie Kozicki has served as our Program Director as of June, 2019 and is responsible for all program development, volunteer recruitment and management, and the implementation of each child's Barn Activity Plan. She is a Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant/Licensed and has significant experience working with differently-abled children.
• Chris Guldin has been The Barn's Facilities Manager for over 10 years. In addition to caring for the animals central to The Barn's mission and maintaining the grounds and buildings, Chris also assists in program delivery.

Last year, The Barn served over 350 children through 3,500+ hours of programming. To accomplish this, The Barn benefited from the service of over 300 dedicated volunteers who contributed over 5,000 hours of time to supplement Barn staff. In 2024 we will continue in our current programs, while also seeking additional ways to reach out to more families who need our services. We expect once again to experience growing numbers of

Our programs and reputation continue to attract experienced and dedicated volunteers who provide unprecedented one-to-one counsel and care for each of our child participants. In addition, findings from a multi-year partnership with West Chester University's Graduate Social Work program on the benefits of animal-assisted therapy for differently-abled children was recently published.

Our small core staff and dedicated volunteers achieve our mission through four signature programs that are offered March through the end of November annually: Camp Geronimo, Individual Programs, Educational Field Trips and Socialization Events. Camp Geronimo, our most popular program, provides up to 96 children ages 6 to 12 a unique summer day camp experience - an opportunity to have fun in a safe, secure setting while learning new skills that address their specific needs.

Our Individual Programs, offered to children ages 2 to 12 once a week for twelve-week sessions, provide one-on-one therapy with an experienced volunteer. Our staff works with parents and guardians to develop an individualized Barn Activity Plan for each child to help set goals, track progress and to complement any existing therapy or education. Examples of goals include improving fine motor skills, developing communication skills and building self-esteem.

The Barn offers four annual socialization events geared to local families who have children with disabilities. These include an Autumn Festival, Summer Splash, Spring Fling and a winter Pancake Breakfast. The goal of these events is to provide our families further opportunities to interact with one another and with the Barn staff and animals. In addition, The Barn provides parent support in the form of seminars and mutual support groups and as well as a lending library of resources for children with special needs. Approximately 30 families participate in each of our four events annually.

The Barn also offers educational field trips to groups of students from local schools and programs such as the Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU), the ARC of Chester County, Greenwood Elementary School, Overbrook School for the Blind, and St. Edmund's Home for Children among others. Each group brings their own counselors and aides and sets goals in conjunction with the Barn's staff. Children, parents and staff participating in these field trips are often amazed at the extent of the hands-on interaction involved. The Barn can accommodate twelve field trips annually, with 15 children accompanied by aides.