FREDERICKTOWN – Lynn Hauler-Bonar's Hobby Horse Hill brings joy and much-needed therapy to Ohioans of all ages and backgrounds, including first responders suffering from PTSD, children from embattled households and gang members on the precipice of a life behind bars.
Hauler-Bonar manages the Hobby Horse Hill barn and has a deep background in equestrian competitions; holding gold, silver and bronze medals in dressage and being a previous judge at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
In addition to children, they also work closely with programs for abused women. Approximately six years ago, Hobby Horse Hills shifted to nonprofit status and dove into providing equine therapeutic services to local organizations such as Abraxas Youth & Family Services, which offers behavior treatment solutions for at-risk youth from disparate backgrounds.
"The majority of their kids are from gangs in Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus," Hauler-Bonar told the Mount Vernon News. "A lot of them have never felt empathy and their therapists are super happy with the results. Some of the kids have been on suicide watch, but they have found that when the kids come here and interact with horses, they're off the suicide watch, which is pretty amazing."
She noted that Hobby Horse Hill's main instructor, Roger Noe, has an extensive background in therapy and works closely with Abraxas, making their facility an optimal fit for youth from the aforementioned programs.
"He really does a super job," Hauler-Bonar said. "We also have a lot of important people on our board, which really helps too."
Hobby Horse Hills strives to stand out from the pack with its program.
"Our program is very unique when compared to other therapies," Hauler-Bonar told the News. "We do rider-guided therapy. In a lot of programs, the person is just led around and never really learns anything. Here we teach them how to actually brush, saddle and bridle the horse. And they learn how to interact safely and properly, as well as how to get on the animal to steer and work with the horse where they get instant feedback. It gives them a sense of accomplishment. That's something a lot of these kids have never had."
When asked what she loves most about Mount Vernon, Hauler-Bonar warmly said, "The friendliness of the people." This, of course, matches succinctly with Hobby Horse Hill's mission to bring comfort and aid to those who need it most.
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