Located in Overland Park, Kansas, Heartland Therapeutic Riding offers both therapeutic horsemanship and occupational therapy to its clients.

“Our main goal is to provide an outlet for individuals in our community to experience a bond with a horse,” said Willow Betow, Heartland Therapeutic’s program director and volunteer manager. “We are providing an outlet for physical activity that is specifically adapted for disabled individuals, as well as a safe place where everyone can come out and enjoy horses.”

Mary Nestor-Adams, who heads Heartland Therapeutic’s occupational therapy program, explained that the program provides individualized strategies to clients that develop their motor skills. This applies to both horse-related tasks and non-horse-related tasks, such as sustaining friendships or getting dressed.

For example, Nestor-Adams recounted a student in the intensive therapy program who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, who came to Heartland Therapeutic hoping to address her core weakness and decreased mobility.

“We had her side sitting on the horse, reaching down to her toes, and pulling rings over her feet to work on the motion of pulling pant legs on,” Nestor-Adams said. “We would practice that skill on the horse, and then we’d go into our treatment room and practice that same skill with actual pants. We work on that translation across environments.”

Nestor-Adams also said she was excited for the program to grow and provide more opportunities to her community. She said her favorite part of working at Heartland Therapeutic is seeing the “magic moments” when clients connect with their horse.

“I was evaluating a little girl last week, and she uses an Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) device to communicate. She was telling us to open the gate and finding the ‘horse’ word on her AAC. Her mom said she doesn't use her AAC that frequently for such a short period of time. Then, when we got back into the treatment room, she said, ‘Goodbye, horse,’” Nestor-Adams said. “It's cool to get to share moments like that with families.”

Upon visiting Heartland Therapeutic in May 2024, USEF’s Director of Membership, DEI, and Development Mikhail Proctor said the facility was “absolutely beautiful.”

“You come in, and everything is nice and calm. Everything is pristine, and their operation is a well-oiled machine,” Proctor said. “When the participants arrive, they all have a plan. They pay attention to every little thing, and the environment is so open. If a child had a question, they would make sure they stopped and explained what they were doing. They felt like a part of that family.”

Heartland Therapeutic was one of seven recipients of a USEF Opportunity Fund grant in 2022. The organization used the grant to address growing waitlists and to update their second indoor arena, adding heating and fans so the arena can be used throughout the year.

“It’s quite cold during the winter, so this allows us to run programs all year round,” Nestor-Adams said. “We're just continuing to grow and expand, and we want to be able to serve as many kids and families in the Kansas City area as we can.”

Heartland Therapeutic has also added a second occupational therapist to their staff and introduced intensive therapy programs in the summer for the first time. Additionally, though the facilities are currently closed on the weekends, Betow explained that more resources will allow the schedule to expand.

“We're looking to provide services for as many people as we can. There are just not enough services out there for individuals who have disabilities,” Betow said. “(Providing those services) takes resources. It takes space. It takes more horses. It takes more volunteers. Applying for a grant helped us to expand our services.”

Proctor also forecasted increased staff sizes thanks to the boosted supply and demand the grant will inspire.

“They've been in the Community Outreach Program from the start, and it's been really nice seeing the progress from when they first joined to now,” Proctor said. “They're a trendsetter with this program.  They are proactive, which is something we like from all of our Community Outreach Organizations. They’re definitely an organization to look up to.”