2008 NARHA National Conference

I was in Hartford, CT recently for the 2008 NARHA National Conference. Basically the biggest professional event in the US in the field of therapeutic riding and equine facilitated mental health and learning. It was great.

I started my week away from home with a visit to meet in person some wonderful bloggers I know. Their blogs are Teachings of the Horse, Grey Horse Matters, and Glenshee Equestrian Centre. Wonderful horse people to get to know better!

The next day I spent at Green Chimneys, a farm-based residential center in NY that serves close to 200 youths. That was a pre-conference workshop. Then three and a half days of workshops, presentations, food, and comraderie aka networking.

And I presented there as well, on Saturday as part of the "Horse Expo" at the Storrs, CT campus of UConn. A big thanks to the UConn Equine Studies program!

I purchased four books after some contact and conversation with each author, both to support these wonderful professionals and to have convenient access to their thoughts via the books.

1) Walking the Way of the Horse: Exploring the Power of the Horse-Human Relationship, by Lief Hallberg

2) Riding into Your Mythic Life: Transformational Adventures with the Horse, by Patricia Broersma

3) My Horse, My Partner: Teamwork on the Ground, by Lisa Wysocky

4) Hello Bob! + 49 Other Interactive Vaulting Games, by Gisela H. Rhodes

I have to write up an evaluation report on the workshops I attended (which I predict I will post here when I'm done). These are the titles of those workshops I attended (there were often 4-5 workshops running concurrently):

EFMHA Workshop: 60 Years of Practice: The Impact of the Green Chimneys Farm Nature Based Program Approach.

Managing Stress in Your Equine Herd - Lisa Wysocky.

Working with Nonverbal Learning in a Therapeutic Riding Setting - Becky Lundeen, CCC, SLP, HPCS.

Horses and Individuals with Autism: A Natural Therapeutic Relationship - Deborah Lipsky and Will Richards, PhD.

The Important Relationship Between Autism and Movement and How a Horse Can Help - Nancy Stellrecht, PT, HPCS.

Equine Facilitated Group Therapy with Teen Survivors of Sexual Abuse - Molly DePrekel MA, LP and Kay Neznik.

Stepping Stones to Success: How to Achieve and Measure Skill Progression During a Riding Lesson - Anthony Busacca and Amy Sheets.

Transitioning the Hippotherapy Client into the Therapeutic Riding Arena - Laura Simak and Debbie Sords, PT.

Advanced Leader Horse Handling - Lasell Bartlett MSW.

Understanding Equine Behavior & Desensitizing - Holly Sundmacker and Lauren Fitzgerald.

Creating Symmetry between Horse and Rider - Tracy McGowan.