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T. H.R.I.L, volunteers Kim Moreno, left, and Valerie Workman, right, guide Earline James in a balance exercise with the horse, Mandy.
Patients on horseback guide their own therapy
Riding school takes the lead in rehabilitating the handicapped
E arline James leads her horse, Mandy, around the corral with the help of three assistants. Like horse riders everywhere, James
encourages her horse to turn and to walk.
But what makes this relationship unique is that Mandy is part of James' therapy.
James suffers from severe arthritis. She was looking for a creative way to exercise her muscles when she discovered Mandy at Therapeutic Horse Riding Instruction of Lawrence.
T. H.R.I.L. was the brainchild of Gayle Bruns, the program's executive director.
"I had always wanted to learn to ride, but never bad," James said. "This got me out of the house, and I've learned something I didn't know before."
James is enrolled in her second class at T.H.R.I.L. For one hour every week, she swings her feet off the ground and takes the reins of an 800-pound animal.
Story by JL Watson
"It started in 1992 when I was taking to a girlfriend of mine who has a disabled child," Bruns said. "I had just purchased a horse and had gone to visit the Heartland School of Riding in Kansas City. I was so taken with the process that we decided that Lawrence needed a therapeutic riding school."
Bruns and her staff of volunteers attended workshops, planned lessons and applied for non-profit status. The status was granted in October 1992, and lessons began last June.
Photos by Holly McQueen
The classes run for eight weeks, and any person with a disability is eligible to attend, Bruns said.
"We'll try to accommodate everyone," she said. "Right now we have students with cerebral palsy, deafness and arthritis. We
The program costs $160 for an eight week session; scholarships are available. Lessons are taught by volunteers who donate not only their time, but also their horses. Volunteers drive their horses in trailers from their homes to a barn northwest of town, Bruns said.
also work with behavior and emotional disorder kids. Any age is welcome."
Von Schroeder is a founding member of T.H.R.I.L. and chief riding instructor. She coordinates fund-raising efforts but said she found working with the students most rewarding.
"I feel like get more out of the lessons than the students," she said. "It's a joy to see someone who spends a lot of time in a wheelchair or immobile get up on a horse and enjoy that freedom."
**Above:** During the horse ride, T.H.R. B.I., instructor Von Schroeder, left, and volunteer Kay Albright, right, assist Nate McGlothin, 7, in vaulting, which is an exercise that helps him stretch his muscles.
**Right:** Therapeutic Horse Riding Instruction of Lawrence, a nonprofit organization, is a horse riding club north of Lawrence that uses horses for rehabilitation purposes.
"A lot of our students spend so much time in a hospital setting, in boring, repetitive therapy, that this is fun for them. They don't realize that this is therapy, too," she said.
Schroeder said that many autistic children have difficulty learning new things, but it is normal for them to want to hug a horse.
Schroeder said one of the biggest benefits of T.H.R.I.L. was that it provided an outlet for families with a disabled member to participate in an activity together.
"We have one family with an exceptional child and four other children," Schroeder said. "There aren't that many activities they can participate in together. After they came to our program and saw how much can be done through horses, they're thinking about buying one."
Though it is a new organization, T.H.R.LL has caught the attention of local charity fund raisers. It recently was named to be the beneficiary of tife Lawrence St. Patrick's Day Parade.
"I don't know how much money we'll get from the fund raise," Bruns said. "Whatever it is, it means a lot to us. It means we can buy nicer equipment, help pay for horse care and send our volunteers through training."
Extra money also means expansion for the program, Bruns said. More classes will be added next year with a variety of riding styles.
"We want to work on performing acrobatics on the horse, which is good for muscle development and balance." Bruns said. "Above all, we want to work not just on the body, but on the emotional and spiritual aspects. In the end, the students get attached to the horses, and the volunteers got attached to the students."
For more information about T.H.R.I.L., call Gayle Bruns at 841-9740.
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
T. H.R.I.L. board member and Instructor Von Schroeder, right, teaches Whitney Van Dyke, 5, who has cerebral paly, the correct way of commanding her horse, Eclipse, to walk.
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See WEIRD,Page 8