August 20, 2019
Dear Flying Horse Foundation,
I am writing on behalf of Mary’s Home to express deepest thanks and pass along encouragement. I’ve worked at Mary’s Home for a little over a year as a Resident Advisor. I live at Mary’s Home and so the nature of my role is very face-to-face, interacting with the residents and their children on a daily basis, throughout the entire day. I have also been a full-time pastor and a foster parent, so my training in trauma/healing trauma is more developed than most. The transformation I’ve seen in the residents over three months of equine therapy at your facility is truly remarkable. I know that research exists, and that we can clinically explain what happens between horses and patients, and why it works the way it does, but seeing it first hand is like watching a miracle unfold before your eyes. It is not clinical; it is awe-inspiring.
The residents connected with their Flying Horse teacher/therapist immediately, which is already unprecedented, as these ladies do not trust easily. Then, when they began to hear each horse’s story and interact with the horses, the changes in the residents came quickly and clearly. One specific story of transformation has to do with one resident who unexpectedly, tragically lost her birth father to cancer in the middle of May. She is not one to process grief or pain and instead runs from intense emotion. The horse that she bonded with was King, and she adored him. As you might guess where the story is headed, when King was put down a couple weeks ago, it threw her into an emotional storm. Her conscious mind was saying, “If I get close to anyone, they are taken away.” The bond she formed with King was helping her process the pain of her father’s death, now King was gone, and now there was even more pain. However, becauseof her bond with King she was open to talking about and processing all of the grief that was surfacing! Even from years past! It was huge growth. This past week, she had to work with Tucker for the first time instead of King. As she recounted the morning to me she said, “I really wasn’t feeling it. He’s not King and we don’t have a bond. …And then later, almost at the end of our time, I felt like something clicked and he was telling me, ‘It’s ok, I understand. I’ll be your new King.’”
About a month ago I was on a weekend trip in Crested Butte where there happened to be a photography showing. One of the photographers’ main subjects was a herd of wild horses in Wyoming. As I started observing her series, within seconds I burst into tears. This reaction bubbled up in me solelybecause of what I’ve seen these magnificent creatures accomplish with the Mary’s Home residents over the past three months.
Each woman living at Mary’s Home has a harrowing story full of heartbreak and trauma and grit and resiliency. Each of them has a very specific personality, specific triggers, specific humor, and specific gifts. Now we know- so do the horses! That alone creates a connection. But for the residents, the horses aren’t judging them, pressuring them, trying to take advantage of them, or even hinting that they move on and act happy. The horses are simply existing in their current circumstance, with healthy boundaries and appropriate expectations, and giving the residents permission to do the same.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for partnering with Mary’s Home and opening up this incredible opportunity for the residents’ healing journey.
With much appreciation and admiration,
Beth Snyder
Resident Advisor, Mary’s Home
DreamCenters of Colorado Springs