April 2024 Newsletter
Wow, has this month been crazy. We recently met with a dirt contractor to prep for the barn. Yes, you heard that right, a barn! We thought that maybe someday a barn would be in our future, years down the road, but knew there was no way we would be able to swing one in the short term. But God brought us a generous donor, and it's been a whilrwind of planning since! Basically a mini mountain will be moved and shaped into the perfect setting for a barn. The barn will sit at the top, just above the future 50'x150' riding arena. There will be a huge 60'x12' covered patio overlooking the riding arena for parents/guardians to sit while their kids session. There will also be a round pen just down from the arena.
We just finalized pasture plans and hope to get fencing up in the next couple of weeks. As all construction seems to go in northern MN, we've already run into some minor delays. Some good news though, another similar non-profit has mentioned that they may be donating an already trained session horse to our ministry. This would be a huge blessing because we have been searching for two horses for a couple of months now and we are still looking for the perfect fit. We will not take just any horse. We need to make sure that whatever horses God provides are very well broke, and well-mannered since they will be around young, inexperienced riders.
On another exciting note, Jessi got into the mentoring program at Crystal Peaks youth Ranch in WA. This is a nationally recognized training program for exactly what we are launching-- faith based healing with the help of a horse. This is a multi-day training and should help give us a lot of tools for our tool belt whenever we are able to open to the public. Crystal Peaks has been around for 20+ years and really knows their stuff.
We've been overwhelmed with the generosity of people in our community. We have one donor who is completely funding the barn build. This has just been a huge blessing and to be honest, without this persons support, this ministry might not have even become a reality. About 80% of local business we have shared our ideas with have either donated to our cause, or are considering donating. These are mainly secular businesses too. Basically every manager we speak with shares a story about someone they know who could benefit from what we are going to do. The community support has been overwhelming! This just shows what a need this is to our community! We will be listing all of the business who give on our "what we need" page. If you shop at these places, please let the manager know when you're there you are thankful for their support of Unbridled Ranch.
We are excited to open whenever we can. It's still going to be a while though. Once the new horses arrive here we are going to work with them for some time and make sure they are up to our safety and training standards. We also need to raise a monthly budget to fund things like feed, insurance, electricity costs, etc., as this is a ministry that will be 100% free to the participant. This could happen quickly, or it might take some time. We are letting God work and we will open in His timing. We are not rushing things by any means because it's just not a good idea to rush horses. We will open when they are here and up to our standards. Therefore, we are not announcing any opening date just yet. If you know of anyone who wants to donate or sell a gelding who is very broke and has experience being around kids, please let us know.
We will upload our barn plans to Facebook in the near future. Be in prayer for the right contractor to build the barn, continued giving to start this up, and monthly supporters to make this thrive long term.
Eric
We just finalized pasture plans and hope to get fencing up in the next couple of weeks. As all construction seems to go in northern MN, we've already run into some minor delays. Some good news though, another similar non-profit has mentioned that they may be donating an already trained session horse to our ministry. This would be a huge blessing because we have been searching for two horses for a couple of months now and we are still looking for the perfect fit. We will not take just any horse. We need to make sure that whatever horses God provides are very well broke, and well-mannered since they will be around young, inexperienced riders.
On another exciting note, Jessi got into the mentoring program at Crystal Peaks youth Ranch in WA. This is a nationally recognized training program for exactly what we are launching-- faith based healing with the help of a horse. This is a multi-day training and should help give us a lot of tools for our tool belt whenever we are able to open to the public. Crystal Peaks has been around for 20+ years and really knows their stuff.
We've been overwhelmed with the generosity of people in our community. We have one donor who is completely funding the barn build. This has just been a huge blessing and to be honest, without this persons support, this ministry might not have even become a reality. About 80% of local business we have shared our ideas with have either donated to our cause, or are considering donating. These are mainly secular businesses too. Basically every manager we speak with shares a story about someone they know who could benefit from what we are going to do. The community support has been overwhelming! This just shows what a need this is to our community! We will be listing all of the business who give on our "what we need" page. If you shop at these places, please let the manager know when you're there you are thankful for their support of Unbridled Ranch.
We are excited to open whenever we can. It's still going to be a while though. Once the new horses arrive here we are going to work with them for some time and make sure they are up to our safety and training standards. We also need to raise a monthly budget to fund things like feed, insurance, electricity costs, etc., as this is a ministry that will be 100% free to the participant. This could happen quickly, or it might take some time. We are letting God work and we will open in His timing. We are not rushing things by any means because it's just not a good idea to rush horses. We will open when they are here and up to our standards. Therefore, we are not announcing any opening date just yet. If you know of anyone who wants to donate or sell a gelding who is very broke and has experience being around kids, please let us know.
We will upload our barn plans to Facebook in the near future. Be in prayer for the right contractor to build the barn, continued giving to start this up, and monthly supporters to make this thrive long term.
Eric