On Saturday, Oct. 18 and Sunday, Oct. 19 the Mystic Valley Hunt Club in Gales Ferry will host a two-day horse show for professional and amateur riders. In conjunction a silent auction has been organized to benefit the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association, Inc. (NARHA) fledgling program called Horses for Heroes.
The program, which was launched in April 2007, uses the therapeutic properties of horseback riding, generally called equine-assisted activities and therapies (EAAT) to help rehabilitate physically and emotionally wounded war veterans. NARHA past president Dr. Paul Spiers explained.
“Appreciating the power of the horse to change lives is our goal,” said Spiers, “and NARHA wants to provide positive change for these very special lives. Our service personnel have fought to preserve our freedom, and, for many, at a very dear cost. We must be certain that if our wounded service personnel and veterans need and want this kind of help, they will get the best NARHA has to offer. ”
The silent auction was organized largely by competing rider Jennifer Koppy of Massachusetts. After learning of the competition, Koppy and several other adult competitors, including international rider Ann Guptill, decided that the event would be a perfect venue to raise money for a worthy cause.
“Ann contacted me about possibly raising money for some sort of charity and I kind of took the ball and ran with it,” Koppy said. “We looked at a lot of different charities to give to, but in the end Horses for Heroes really stood out as the one that we felt was most worthy. We wanted to give back to a group of people who have laid their lives on the line for our freedom.”
Koppy said she is anticipating auctioning off around 100 items that will all be on display on Oct. 18 before the silent bidding begins on the morning of Oct. 19.
“I’m really excited about it because we’ve gotten a lot of great support,” Koppy said. “We’ve gotten some really upper-level riders who have taken an interest and have donated their services. Courtney King, who just got back from the Olympics, has donated a personal lesson package, and Lou Denizard, who has competed on the Puerto Rican team in the Pan Am games, has donated a full clinic. But we also have all kinds of other things, an authentic Boston Red Sox jacket, tickets to Bruins games, all kinds of things…we just really need people to come out and support this event and this cause.”
For more information on the event, visit www.mysticvalleyhuntclub.com. For more information on NARHA and Horses for Heroes, visit www.NARHA.org.