Our Need for Volunteers

Therapy sessions start every Monday-Friday at 4 pm and finish at 8 pm. All of our riders require a horse handler (a person who leads the horse during the session) and between one and two side walkers (people who walk next to and support the rider during the session). We serve 60+ riders a week, and plan on expanding our number to 80 within the next year, which means that with each rider requiring at least two volunteers to assist them during our sessions we MUST have a minimum of 100 volunteers to keep our program running. Without our valuable volunteers the Saddle Light Center for Therapeutic Horsemanship cannot function.

Please email our Volunteer Coordinator, Rebecca Hollington, at volcoor@sbcglobal.net with any questions about volunteering.

Shifts

Here are the volunteer shifts.

There are 3-6 pm and 6-9 pm shifts available every Monday-Friday to help with our therapy sessions.
There are both AM (7-11 am Saturday and 7:30-9:30 am Sunday) and PM shifts available (4-6 pm every Saturday and 3:30-5:30 pm Sunday) to take care of the horses on our barn manager’s days off.

Our current high need volunteer shifts are:

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
7:30-9:30 am						7-11 am
3:30-5:30 pm	3-6 pm	3-6 pm	3-6 pm	3-6 pm	3-6 pm	4-6 pm
	6-9 pm	6-9 pm	6-9 pm	6-9 pm	6-9 pm

Qualities of Our Volunteers

Due to the nature of our organization we require volunteers who are able to come on a CONSISTENT basis as this is critical to the progress and improvement of our riders and for our horses’ peace of mind. We ask that each volunteer pick a day and shift that they are to reliably participate for the entirety of the season.

If you are looking for a once in a while volunteer opportunity then this is not the kind of volunteer opportunity for you. Volunteering during our therapy sessions and weekend horse care requires a lot of walking and activity so please be prepared to be physically active!

Duties

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Volunteer duties for our weekday shifts include feeding and cleaning up after horses, leading horses to and from their paddocks, assisting with preparing the horses for the therapy sessions, and either leading the horse or supporting the rider during the therapy sessions. Volunteer duties for our weekend horse care shifts include feeding and cleaning up after horses, leading horses to and from their paddocks, and cleaning up the barn.

No experience with horses or disabled persons is required to join the Saddle Light Center volunteer team!

Volunteer Requirements:

Must be AT LEAST 16 years of age to work around the horses (weekend shifts ONLY)
Must be AT LEAST 17 years of age to work around the riders
Must be able to volunteer for a shift CONSISTENTLY for AT LEAST 3 MONTHS
Must fill out a Volunteer Authorization and Release form and attend a training session BEFORE starting to volunteer at SLC

Since SLC is in need of a large number of volunteers, training sessions are held at the Retama Equestrian Center regularly by our Volunteer Coordinator. Please email her at volcoor@sbcglobal.net for more information or any questions you may have.

Volunteer hours are logged by our Volunteer Coordinator weekly, so if your school/work/organization/etc. requires paperwork or letters stating volunteer hours and duties then SLC is happy to fill out/provide paperwork/letters for you!

If you have a passion for horses, kids, and helping out those in need then we want you to come and be a part of the Saddle Light Center for Therapeutic Horsemanship Volunteer Team!

New Volunteer Training Information

If you are interested in volunteering during one of our Monday through Friday shifts, you will need to attend one of our training sessions.

Please contact the Volunteer Coordinator at volcoor@sbcglobal.net to let her know you will be attending. If you are only interested in a weekend shift, you will still need to attend the scheduled volunteer training session.

Training Dates