Business of the Week: Pegagus Therapuetic Riding, Brewster
Since the nonprofit’s inception in 1975, staff at Pegasus Therapeutic Riding dreamed of one day owning a personal facility that would house its horse-assisted programs that were dedicated to people living with disabilities.
“[Pegasus] would utilize other farms in the Hudson Valley and Connecticut, and we really wanted a place of our own,” said Pegasus Therapeutic Riding communications director Christine Fitzgerald.
After years of running its operations from privately-owned farms, Pegasus was finally able to realize its dream in 2007 when an anonymous donor made a contribution of $2.1 million. Nearly four years later, the organization enjoys its very own facility and the freedom to run its programs six days a week.
A former veterinary facility, the 20-acre parcel of land located in Brewster has opened the possibility of unique therapeutic activity for the disabled community in Putnam, Westchester and Fairfield counties. Combined with four other chapters in Pleasantville, Greenwich, New Canaan and Darien, Pegasus Farm serves a wide array of people living with the disabilities as young as four years old until senior citizenship.
The organization’s therapeutic riding program offers its riders and students the chance to develop cognitive and developmental skills while in motion. The movement and rhythm of the horse stimulates the senses of a participant that may not have been otherwise activated. Through the use of a special sensory trail, riders are able to interact and connect with nature by hearing, touching, seeing and smelling.
According to Fitzgerald, the organization’s riding program not only enhances sensory capabilities and physical well-being, but also benefits their emotional development and decision-making skills, as well. These well-rounded methods tackle the physical, emotional, intellectual and social aspects of learning.
“The therapeutic riding program takes a holistic approach,” Fitzgerald said. “Students improve their riding skills and physical control but they also have to guide the horses between colored cones, so that leads them to make certain decisions.”
Pegasus Farm is open year-round with most of its activity occurring in the spring and fall. At any given point during these two seasons, over 100 students can be found atop the organization’s dozen or so horses. Because these times of year are so popular and often fill to capacity, Pegasus offers an additional program throughout the summer months.
“We typically have between 110 and 120 students in our 12-week spring and fall sessions at Pegasus Farm here in Brewster,” Fitzgerald said. “The 6-week summer session, which is the one for students on our wait list, has 90 to 100 participants.”
When winter hits and the snow brings riding to a halt, students can take part in the ‘Horse & Me’ program that allows for face-to-face interaction between the riders and the farm’s horses. Students learn both equine and barn maintenance, as well as horse anatomy and first-aid.
Though 95 percent of the organization’s students are children living with disabilities, adults also actively participate in the programs. Riders can also chose to graduate from Pegasus to receive additional riding instruction outside the farm.
Fitzgerald said the farm’s strong base of support from instructors, therapists and volunteers has allowed Pegasus to become one of 200 premier accredited centers in the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship.
“The work we do at Pegasus is very extensive—we deal with a wide range of people living with disabilities,” Fitzgerald. “Without the help of our staff, we’d be nowhere.”
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.