HUMBLE RANCH EDUCATION & THERAPY CENTER
The Humble Ranch Education and Therapy Center (HRETC) is a 501©3 non-profit founded by physical therapist, Cheri Trousil, in 2000 with a focus to provide equine assisted therapies to those living in the Yampa Valley with special needs. That very first season, Cheri and her team of two horses and four volunteers provided services for four clients.
Slowly over the years, programming at the ranch expanded to meet the need for additional therapeutic services for many children in the valley living with disabilities. By the 14th season in 2013, HRETC grew to employ nine seasonal staff, 80 trained volunteers, and a herd of 10 therapy horses while servicing over 60 children.
In response to the community’s continuing demand for more equine therapies, Cheri and the HRETC board of directors elected to collaborate with Steamboat Adaptive Recreation and Sport (STARS) by passing on the therapeutic riding programs directly to STARS.
By 2016 a successful collaboration found STARS offering all the therapeutic riding in the valley; and Humble Ranch Therapy Center back to their foundation, with Cheri and a small team providing individual equine therapy sessions to a small group of children and adults.
Today Cheri and her team continue to provide hippotherapy for children with special needs that do not fit into the STARS therapeutic riding program.
Additionally, HRETC now offers expanded non-mounted equine activities and workshops. The focus is custom small group workshops ranging anywhere from 3 hours in duration to 3 days of learning and activities. For example, in 2019 HRETC combined equine activities, mindfulness practice and bodywork into a 2-day workshop specifically designed for local Hospice care givers.
Now after more than 20 years of providing therapeutic and educational opportunities for the community, the Therapy Center's passion remains the same. Creating a fun, therapeutic space that welcomes and accepts each individual's unique abilities, while fostering opportunities to connect with the beauty of nature and experience the depth of the animal-human bond.