Donation to Special Strides therapeutic riding center provides hippotherapy and sponsors a horse

In addition to making a donation for a second straight year that will provide a child with one month of hippotherapy at Special Strides, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has also provided funding to sponsor for one month a therapy horse with which Marisa worked at the Monroe-based therapeutic riding center.

The recipient of hippotherapy, who Special Strides’ executive directors will select from a pool of candidates meeting specific criteria at our foundation’s request, will be a Middlesex County resident whose family either does not have health insurance or whose family’s health insurer does not cover the cost of hippotherapy.

“Having a child with a challenge often places a financial burden on a family,” Special Strides states on its website. “Too often, therapy is not covered by insurance. Therefore, it is the goal of Special Strides to help provide all children an opportunity to experience our magic regardless of their financial status.”

Special Strides relies upon nearly two dozen specially trained therapy horses to provide equine-assisted activities and therapy for individuals with special needs.

Prior to receiving her heart transplant, Marisa was on home instruction, living with two life-threatening medical conditions that steroids and other medications were managing. Side effects of those drugs diminished her strength and physical stamina. She worked with physical therapists in a traditional setting prior to receiving hippotherapy at Special Strides.

Marisa immediately bonded with the staff and formed a special relationship with several of the horses including one named Johnny and two other ponies named Romeo and Juliet. Hippotherapy increased Marisa’s stamina and strength. Equally important, Marisa’s experience at Special Strides boosted her morale and self-esteem. Marisa spoke frequently to doctors and nurses about her experience with the horses during her hospitalization, which helped to provide a diversion during medical procedures.

“The relationship between Marisa and Johnny amazed me,” one of the physical therapists at the riding center wrote to Cyndi and Greg shortly after Marisa’s passing about a horse Marisa met. “He saw something special in Marisa and responded to her with a gentleness and love.”

Hippotherapy, according to the American Hippotherapy Association, “Refers to how occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology professionals use evidence-based practice and clinical reasoning in the purposeful manipulation of equine movement to engage sensory, neuromotor and cognitive systems to achieve functional outcomes. In conjunction with the affordances of the equine environment and other treatment strategies, hippotherapy is part of a patient’s integrated plan of care.”

According to an article about Special Strides in The Star Ledger of Newark, “Hippotherapy can help those with autism spectrum disorders, sensory processing disorder, hypotonia, cerebral palsy or muscular dystrophy. And it can be used with children who have developmental delays and who need encouragement to catch up with their peers. More than half of Special Strides’ clients receive occupational or physical therapy, or equine-facilitated psychotherapy. The remainder participate in educational and recreational programs, such as carriage driving or adaptive riding, during which a certified therapeutic riding instructor helps an individual with special needs to learn how to ride a horse. Many clients who discover hippotherapy have already been through traditional physical rehabilitation for years.”

Located in Monroe at Congress Hill Farm, Special Strides is an all equestrian training center with 200 acres of outdoor and indoor training areas and wooded trails, which include a variety of sensory equipment such as trampolines, swings, an adventure course with balance beams and playground equipment.

Individuals can explore the farm during therapy and witness the changes of seasons, picking vegetables in the gardens and visiting other farm animals such as a rabbit, cats, goats, sheep, chickens and alpaca.

Through its sponsorship of a horse, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation helps Special Strides fulfill its mission: To enhance the quality of life for people with a variety of special needs through equine assisted activities and therapies.

Caring for a horse or pony at Special Strides is costly. Through sponsorship, Special Strides receives the necessary funds to support the yearly cost of his or her care, including feed, shavings, hoofcare, veterinary care and tack.

Less than one year since it was founded, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation has already made a profound impact on Middlesex County children in need.

Following are some of the ways in which our tax-exempt nonprofit has assisted pediatric patients and others:

• Collected thousands of toys for pediatric patients at Saint Peter’s University Children’s Hospital and Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital.
• Funded the purchase of brand new metal bunk beds for campers at Kiddie Keep Well Camp, which serves more than 600 underserved Middlesex County children annually.
• Partnered with another foundation to provide a youth football and cheerleading organization with a state-of-the art automated external defibrillator, as well as AED and cardiopulmonary resuscitation training for adult members of the organization.
• Supported instruction and supplies for an art therapy program at Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital, to which our foundation also provided funds for infant mobiles and toy cars staff use to transport children to the operating room for surgery.
• Provided money for equipment and supplies for students with disabilities who utilize the Lakeview School’s newly constructed aquatics center.
• Provided medical alert bracelets to children with autism and pediatric patients with chronic illness who receive outstanding care from Children’s Specialized Hospital, which annually serves more than 34,000 children statewide.
• Partially funded the Make-A-Wish of a Middlesex County boy who is winning a battle with high-risk neuroblastoma.
• Provided physical therapy at Special Strides Therapeutic Riding Center and Project Walk for Middlesex County children whose families do not have health insurance or whose families’ health insurer does not cover the cost of the physical therapy.
• Raised money and collected nonperishable food items to benefit Middlesex County children and their families through Hands of Hope via our foundation’s participation in the Race to Outrun Hunger.
• Provided meals and goods for families staying at the Ronald McDonald House of Central Jersey.
• Assisted four families whose children are in medical crisis, providing financial support through the payment of medical and/or personal expenses to help lessen the burden of parents who have lost wages while spending time at the hospital.
• Provided art scholarships for Middlesex County elementary and middle school students.
• Rewarded high school students for their community service to children with scholarships.
• Partnered with James Monroe Elementary School to fill “Weekend Snack Bags” for pediatric patients and their families.
• Provided scholarships to Greater Middlesex Conference student-athletes.
• Conducted a coat drive for Middlesex County children.
• Provided gift cards for pediatric patients and their families.