You may have read my commentary in June about issues Connie and Cassie Riker and their Belmore Equestrian and Time with Tails nonprofit have had to deal with thanks to a nuisance neighbor.
It stirred reactions. People came out of the woodwork in support of Connie and Cassie. I wanted to do a followup specifically on their program to give them recognition for the great work I feel they are doing, so, notebook in hand, I showed up for my appointment to interview them.
One of the first things I noticed was the front arena — weedy, not currently well maintained — with a section of tall, solid wood fence shielding it from the neighbor. The neighbor is in the process of remodeling their house, so they apparently want to stay next door, for whatever reason.
The property is full. Every inch seems to be utilized in some way. Connie and Cassie have built as they could afford it and as they expanded their operation. They started with a four-stall barn, added a 10-stall barn and then a 14-stall barn. Doing the math, that is a lot of horses for that small of a property, but they manage it well. The horses are very well cared for. In addition to the stalls for the horses, there are two tack rooms, a hay barn, some paddocks, two riding arenas and a small field. One of the interesting quirks in the barns is that electricity and lighting is a little different. They cannot get a permit to run electricity to the barns, so they operate off of solar batteries that have to be recharged (it is Southwest Washington).
Walking around in each barn, around the horses in the paddocks or in the field, there were no flies. If you have been around that many horses, you have probably swished a few flies out of your face. How do they keep the flies away from the horses? Aluminum-free Old Spice deodorant for men — apparently the mares don’t object! Looking at the entire operation, flies are controlled by the use of fly predators. Belmore receives a shipment of the little wasps every three weeks and they (tiny, not harmful to people or livestock) kill the fly pupae, stopping the flies’ life cycle.
The tack rooms — impressive, and not just because of the sheer number of saddles, bridles, etc. Besides being neatly and efficiently organized, each one has a tag identifying which horse it is used for. Efficiency is needed for the best interests of the humans and equines with around 50 different people handling about 25 head of horses. In the corner is a lending library for the participants to borrow from.
Connie told me they have anywhere from 35 to 50 youth enrolled in their program year-round, along with five to eight adults. Cassie teaches lessons six days per week, teaching most levels (every rider is evaluated and scored into one of three levels) of riders most of the days. That alone is a formidable task. Cassie, who is on the autism spectrum, deals with the care of all the horses and the riding and other lessons the participants receive. She uses an efficient system to manage it all.
Belmore runs a riding program that teaches life skills. Connie was careful to point out that it is not a therapy program, although, at one time, they did consider doing that. The Rikers work with at-risk youth and adults. They teach life skills using horses. Their students may be low income, have mental health issues or some type of disability, be part of a divorced family or foster care, from a non-traditional family, referred through the juvenile system — the list goes on.
Students arrive on the property and “check the board.” Daily, Cassie charts each horse and who is responsible for its care, what horse each student will be riding, and other responsibilities.
A little clarification is needed, I think. Belmore Equestrian is the Rikers’ farm, and they run a horsemanship program. Connie owns the property and the horses, and Connie and Cassie volunteer their time. They have a driving desire to contribute to society. Horses changed Cassie’s life, and she knew she could bring about positive changes in other people’s lives through them. Horses gave her the ability to deal with life and taught her to cope. She wanted to share that with others.
Time with Tails is a nonprofit organization set up to give the community access to the program. All revenue from lessons, fundraising and donations goes through the organization. It supports the care of the horses by paying for basic feed, shavings, farrier, disposal of the manure (now that they have to pay to have it hauled away thanks to the neighbor), show expenses for the riders and insurance. Thanks to a recent tax law change, donations over $200 are no longer tax deductible, so donations are down. Connie will have to pick up those unpaid costs. Connie pays the mortgage, to build and maintain the barns, infrastructure, power, tack, veterinarian, her trailer — Connie works full time to be sure they have what they need. She talked about three times that she has had the “opportunity” to give up. She just can’t abandon “her kids” — it has too much impact and the program is so needed.
Bottom line, Time with Tails keeps the cost to participants down — $200 per month will give the rider eight hours of lessons. I have dealt with a lot of trainers and instructors, and I don’t know anyone anywhere else that lessons are that affordable. The participants spend varying amounts of time on the premises, but if they are there, they are working. One girl gets off the school bus at Belmore and stays until 7 p.m. when she is picked up and taken home. A girl who has been riding for six years spends eight hours per day five days a week during the summer. It is called appreciation for a program tailored to the individual’s needs.
I took the opportunity to talk with some students and parents and got permission to take pictures. Mom, Maria, said she grew up with horses and was grateful her daughter has this opportunity. She had a specific standard in an instructor and in how the horses and riders were treated that she was looking for. She found it at Belmore. She has been watching her daughter’s growth and how she has developed. Her daughter, Jordan, has overcome fear and anxiety and learned to be patient — she has learned important life skills. She has watched Jordan commit to doing hard things even when scared, developing perseverance.
Connie said she probably went through 50 different horses raising Cassie. Some horses ended up being just poor purchases, and others were needed as Cassie went through various disciplines and developed her skills. All those horses taught her a lot — and she is passing that on to her students. Belmore students participate in all types of equine disciplines, both Western and English, ride on the beach, have been involved with 4-H— their activities are numerous. Probably the biggest “official” involvement is with the Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA). As part of their Zone of IEA, they compete among riders of nine states to qualify for national competition. Belmore students perform and compete well. Connie and Cassie attribute it to the training and discipline they have developed. The students routinely ride many different horses, so they must learn to adapt to whatever horse they are mounted on.
When they go to competitions, they draw a horse and are expected to be able to deal with it — old hat to them, but a new experience for most of their competitors who are used to only riding their one horse and don’t know how to adapt to the quirks of a horse they just met minutes before entering a competition ring.
Belmore students have made it to the national competition every year for the last seven years. Five students went to Tryon, North Carolina, last year and three went to St. Louis this year. They placed fourth in the nation.
Another student, Sammie, graduated from high school this year and talked to me about the level of respect, the camaraderie, teamwork, sportsmanship and the standard of expected behavior in the program. She said the students all take care of each other and the horses. She appreciates the culture that has been cultivated. She said if something is not right, it is dealt with, not brushed aside and it is never done in a punitive manner. “We are a team, a family.”
The program seems to be heavy on girls (typical of many equine sports), but is open to all. In addition to the regular all-year program, Belmore Equestrian also hosts an adult camp and kids camp that are open to the community. They consist of three half days.
Cassie said being on the spectrum impacts how she treats equine and her perspective on helping kids dealing with troubling things in their life and school. Her purpose in life is helping others in creative ways, using an innate ability to relate and adjust. She is determined that everybody feels safe and that they are treated with dignity and respect.
Belmore accepts members year-round. You can get information at their website, BelmoreEquestrian.com, or you can email connie@belmoreequestrian.com or donate to support the program through timewithtails.org.
Maureen Harkcom grew up on a Lewis County dairy and operated a beef and native hay operation and developed an equine competition facility. She can be reached by email at maureen.harkcom@gmail.com.
