Horsemanship News

We are passionate for sharing the love of God through professional horsemanship instruction.

Volunteering With Horses!

Whether you have never volunteered before or volunteerism is a way of life for you and your family, volunteering at Warm Beach Horsemanship may be just the thing you are looking for to fill your time in a meaningful way! At Warm Beach Horsemanship, we would not be able to do ANY of our programs without the help of caring and diverse volunteers. Every task, job, and role is meaningful. From sweeping to tack conditioning, class assistance to vehicle and ...

Horse Magic

My first love was a big bay gelding named Clipper.  I was 5, visiting a cousin’s horse ranch for summer vacation. Clipper was a gentle giant who was always steady and calm around me; it was as if he sensed what I needed. With no dad in my life and a mom suffering from mental illness, steady calm was rare for me, so my time with Clipper was a stark contrast, a magical refuge. Once, I saw a teenage girl ...

A Time of Connection

The Certified Horsemanship Association (CHA) Regional Conference is a great time for personal growth and learning from professionals in their various careers and trades in the horsemanship world. Warm Beach Camp & Conference Center happily hosted this year's conference in March. Not only is knowledge and information shared during the weekend, but it is filled opportunities to make new connections and friendships with people you may not meet otherwise. I was blessed to experience all these things throughout the weekend. ...

Growing Beyond Myself

I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears (Psalms 34:4)  Reaching, seeking, and stretching all indicate areas of growth. Adaptive vaulting challenges not only physical effort but emotional effort as well. Vaulting’s unique environment and equipment provides opportunity for participants to reach beyond themselves. They discover physical and emotional boundaries can move. Flexibility becomes a metaphor as well as a physical experience. With Warm Beach Horsemanship’s equine partners and volunteer support, participants experience ...

Growing Confidence in New Experiences

Finding experiences and activities that your kids truly love can be a challenge. Our son Jonah had a hard time finding an activity he enjoyed enough to do more than once. He played soccer, basketball, ice skating, and even joined a math team, but nothing gave Jonah joy and confidence like ridging lessons at Warm Beach Camp. We signed him up for riding lessons hoping it might help him find something he enjoys but he found SO much more. For ...

A Very Good Thing

When I gaze upon the beauty of a PNW sunset from my outlook at the stables. God’s faithfulness and provision are ever-present. His evidence abounds. The evergreen trees and lush green pastures withstand record breaking heat of summer, buffeting high winds of fall and bitter cold in winter. They remain the backdrop for the life-giving ministry between horses and people and give testimony to the work the Lord has laid before us at the stables. Beautiful fruit is being shaped ...

Lessons for Life

“And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.” Galatians 6:9  The Riding Lesson program at Warm Beach Horsemanship continues to thrive as many realize these lessons don’t only improve riding skills, but they also develop valuable life skills.  Riding lessons provide an amazing opportunity for ministry! Warm Beach Horsemanship staff build relationships through regular weekly interaction with students. Through this, students experience the love of Christ, coupled ...

Come To the Middle

The relationship between horse and rider is similar to our relationship with God. Through interacting with horses all my life, including incredibly meaningful weeks attending Horse Camp as a child, I’ve witnessed God’s fingerprints displayed through horses profoundly. When I was asked to pastor a week of Horse Camp, I had trouble putting pen to paper. Before the first chapel, I dropped to a knee and asked the Holy Spirit to guide my words. He answered my prayer with short ...

Horses: Life Impact

If you have ever felt a horse’s warm breath on your skin or breathed in their scent as you hugged their neck while laying your head on their side, you will know that horses have a way of reaching deep into your soul. They bringing comfort to places in your heart that may be buried under layers of grief, bitterness, rejection, fear, or hurt. Our goal at Warm Beach Horsemanship is to provide as many opportunities as possible for people ...

Horses Bring Hope

Warm Beach Horsemanship is one of the few programs at Camp that can follow CDC guidelines and remain open, providing a place of hope and healing during these challenging times. Due to the restrictions caused by COVID-19 many people’s lives have been thrown into turmoil. Things we once took for granted have been stripped away from us, however amidst this turmoil there is HOPE…    Those missing physical touch can wrap their arms around a horse and feel the comfort that comes from an embrace. Words cannot express the joy and healing ...

The Earth Has Yielded Its Harvest

So be patient, brethren, [as you wait] till the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits expectantly for the precious harvest from the land. [See how] he keeps up his patient [vigil] over it until it receives the early and late rains. James 5:7 The songbirds welcomed a crew of hearty folks to the Warm Beach Horsemanship pastures as preparations were made to bring in a bountiful hay harvest. Volunteers gathered and created a crew of loaders, lifters, ...

Unexpected Blessings

The sun was shining as three women saddled their horses at the Warm Beach Camp stables, but this ride was not for campers. They had a much different purpose. The ladies mounted their horses and made their way up the hill toward the Warm Beach Senior Community.   The COVID-19 crisis has meant that the Senior Community residents have been quarantined since early March. As for many of us, lock-down has led to feelings of isolation and sadness. The ladies from ...

The Basic Benefits of Therapeutic Horsemanship

Horses provide a unique opportunity to reflect, moderate, and restore people. Warm Beach Horsemanship offers therapeutic classes that help people in the following areas: disability/mobility impairment rehabilitation (recovery from surgery, illness, accident) restoration (trauma, emotional, spiritual) Therapeutic riding and/or vaulting strengthens core muscles in a non-weight bearing environment. The horse’s gait at the walk mimics a human’s gait. It is unimpeded and allows for full range of motion. This unimpeded walking motion supplies a sensory stimulus up the spinal column ...

Horses Heal

Two years ago, Warm Beach Horsemanship Director Lisa Tremain had a severe crushing injury resulting in permanent nerve damage in her left leg. Today, she is riding and working confidently, largely thanks to therapeutic vaulting. After a year and a half of physical therapy, Lisa plateaued in her recovery. She was frustrated with her working and riding limitations. Seeing this, Ginger Reitz, Warm Beach’s Therapeutic Horsemanship Coordinator, approached Lisa and suggested therapeutic vaulting to supplement her physical therapy. Lisa saw ...

“I Received a Scholarship”

Warm Beach Horsemanship offers Equestrian Vaulting instruction through camps, classes, and even a competitive club team. Equestrian Vaulting is essentially gymnastics and dance on a moving horse. Many who participate in vaulting instruction are horse enthusiasts but have never tried the sport. As you can imagine the first time sitting on a horse with no saddle and being asked to let go and stretch your arms to the side can be rather unnerving. Ginger Reitz, Assistant Horsemanship Director, describes the ...

Letting Go

By Shelby Janes Life can be hectic. One can easily find themselves running from one thing to the next, groceries, social activities, work, cooking, cleaning, and phone calls. I’m sure you could add to this list. But there are also activities that cause us to take pause and reflect on the world and our place in it: gardening, going to church, holding a baby, taking a walk, watching a sunset, and if you are an animal lover, working with a ...

Life skills learned through horses

I have had the pleasure of seeing how horse partnerships impact campers’ lives, bringing self-confidence and joy. Some campers come to horsemanship fearful and by the end of their program ride confidently with their new horse friend. Horses have so much to teach us about trust, leadership and self-confidence. Through horsemanship I aim to teach students that in relationship with their horse they can become effective leaders. If given clear cues and treated with respect, a horse will begin to ...

Hope and love in God

As I sat around the crackling campfire with my campers this summer, I was filled with amazement as they began to share their stories. One particular girl stood out to me. I knew some of her background as she’d been to Horse Camp for a number of years, but this year was different. She had a sparkle in her eye as she told of the way God had helped her through her struggles and she boldly encouraged the other kids ...

The healing power of a horse

Kristine Campbell, a Warm Beach Camp resident and volunteer, has been participating in the Therapeutic Horsemanship Program, at Warm Beach Camp for several months. Kristine has Multiple Sclerosis (MS), a disease of the central nervous system. MS can cause fatigue, eye problems, cognitive problems, heat sensitivity, and balance issues, just to name a few. For Kristine, having MS means that she has to be vigilant whenever she is walking so that she doesn’t lose her balance. About a year ago, ...
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The Rampathon is on!

Nearly choking back tears, the crew foreman for Synergy Construction described how meaningful it was to watch little Ashley Schreiber mount the big black draft horse, Freya. His crew had just spent three days at Warm Beach Camp Stables building an elaborate ramp, complete with hand rails, a mounting platform, fencing, and gates, to create a safe space for mobility challenged riders to mount their horses. With ease, Ashley was able to transfer from her wheelchair to the back of ...