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Photo of Ivory Pal by Cheri Prill Tennessee Walking Horse Issue August 2010

A friend used to keep a reminder tacked to her refrigerator. It was all about attitude. The essence of it was that attitude is the most important aspect in life. And it’s really the only thing over which we have total control.

What is PATH Intl.?

As stated by; PATH Intl. was founded in 1969 as the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (NARHA) to promote safe and effective therapeutic horseback riding throughout the United States and Canada. Today, PATH Intl. has nearly 800 member centres and over 6,300 individual members in countries all over the world, who help and support more than 42,000 men, women and children with special needs each year through a variety of equine-assisted activity and therapy programs.

A heart of Gold is about a volunteer named Lisa Wysocky from within the Path Intel. Organization. Lisa is a accomplished and successful author, equine clinician, and motivational speaker. She trains horses for and consults with therapeutic riding programs across the country.

A riding instructor once taught Lisa that by striving to be the best you can be, you often become the best anyone can be. That concept of success, and the instructor's insistence that how you won in the show ring--or in life--was more important than what you won, changed her life.

Lisa capture’s the essence of a person who exemplifies the kind of attitude you need and work with a PATH Intl. organization. She is a kind person who doesn’t “underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.”

She is one of many who offer themselves as vehicles with the horses to bring smiles on many special needs population men, women, and children’s faces as they stride along side the horse. Lisa and the volunteers inspire and instil confidence to the student’s to be the best they can be.

Lisa is also a registered level PATH International (Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship) instructor and was recently chosen as one of the country's Top 50 riding instructors by ARIA (American Riding Instructor's Association).

I asked Lisa if she could tell me about a special person that stands out in her mind most that you have been able to help or see such progress as they were coming to the therapeutic riding sessions over the years.

One young man in his early twenties had been in a car accident about a year before he began riding. In the accident he sustained some brain injuries and was rendered a paraplegic. After about two months of riding once a week he had developed enough strength in his core that he could lean over to tie his shoes. I thought what a gift the horse has given him. It is such a simple thing to tie your shoes.

It is something most of us take for granted, but that little bit of independence meant the world to him and encouraged him to try to do more.

Do you have a person that you have mentored that stands out in your mind most? Do you think the people you have working with the horses are able to communicate effectively and understand the bond one builds upon to gain the trust to make the horse a standout in the type of work you are doing?

One volunteer at a therapeutic riding center I teach at has come so far. She knew nothing about horses when she arrived, but she had an interest and the desire to learn. Over the years she has learned to perform basic procedures of lunging horses, ground drive, and feed, desensitize horses, and give them light massage. Even the most timid horses respond positively to her and in turn, I have watched her grow as a person. It has been a wonderful progress to observe!

Once people begin to understand how a horse thinks and start to interact with a horse in ways a horse better understands, it is amazing how fast a bond between horse and human develops. Once that bond and trust is in place, both horse and human can learn amazing things together.

Then I asked Lisa to tell me about a couple of the horses that have touched her heart.

She spoke of Valentino a TW cross, who was a rescued as a yearling at

18 months after he had been in complete isolation. How he had turned around into this amazing, perceptive horse. He has been the horse of the year for region 5 (Fl/GA) and National’s are coming up. She is thrilled for him, as he had no people and no horse skills until he was adopted by the therapeutic riding center.

Another of the horses is a Halfinger gelding called, “Nacho”. He came to the therapeutic center with driving experience only. He bucked off other trainers. As he was coming along – he had been very curious and had gotten his head stuck in a kid’s basketball net, while Lisa was riding him. She braced for the worst, thinking of another instructor’s experience. But, he didn’t panic! He progressed nicely that he was used in a national campaign for Tractor Supply in 2005.

Lisa is one of those people who routes for the underdog! She works in the disability field – but believes you can achieve it. Lisa had an only son named, Colby. She calls him an old soul – She remembers at 5 years old he said, he was not getting married. As he got older he wanted to save the world, was an environmentalist, was into education, helped the homeless, and loved animals. But, he also suffered from Panic Attacks, Social Anxiety, Depression, and was Schizophrenic. Colby didn’t get a chance to see his dream’s come to fruition. Lisa puts all her extra time and energy into Colby’s Army. A wonderful foundation and group of volunteer’s who make up backpack’s for the homeless. She works effortlessly to help others but, Lisa would do anything she could to have her son back!

[NOTE – To find out more about Lisa please visit her website’s Lisa’s websites listed below: www.LisaWysocky.com and or www.ColbysArmy.org and also: www.PATHintl.org] You may want to route for the underdog with Lisa and volunteer at one of the organization’s listed here.