Work To Ride: Equine Program For Under-Resourced Youth Breaks Ground On State-Of-The-Art Facility

Recently, Work to Ride (WTR), a nonprofit organization that provides horsemanship education and equine sports training to youth from under-resourced communities, hosted a groundbreaking ceremony and launched the public phase of its $8 million capital campaign to renovate The Chamounix Equestrian Center in Fairmount Park. The organization has already raised $6.2 million for the project which will update its existing outdoor riding arena and create an indoor equestrian arena for local, regional, and national equestrian events. The arena is expected to be complete by 2023.

Lezlie Hiner, WTR Founder & Executive Director, said, “The Work to Ride barn has been a home away from home for young people from nearby dense urban communities for nearly 30 years. These young men and women are an inspiration every day. The proposed indoor arena and renovations will allow us to expand our program to reach even more young people and transform more lives.”

Philadelphia Councilman Curtis Jones, Jr. who attended the groundbreaking event, said, “On behalf of Mayor Jim Kenney and the Commissioner of Recreation, Kathryn Ott Lovell, we are grateful to have the Work to Ride program. I've been able to attend a polo match and saw how lifechanging it can be for people who sometimes don't get to leave 10 square blocks from their house. If you are able to travel and see the world, it changes you forever as you realize that the world is a much smaller place. You actually have more in common than you ever thought possible.”

WTR is one of only a handful of programs throughout the country that use equine sports to improve the life prospects and outcomes of urban youth. Recent success stories include Daymar Rosser, who with his teammates at Roger Williams University, won the 2017 United States Polo Association's National Intercollegiate Championship; and 2016 graduate Shariah Harris, who received a scholarship to Cornell University and in 2017 became the first African American woman to play 20-goal polo.

Harris, who attributed much of her success to the Work to Ride program, spoke at the event noting “Everyone who has been through this program has been successful…The program teaches you how to live life, get along with others, develop a positive work ethic and fall in love with horses.”

Kareem Rosser, a board member and alumnus of Work to Ride has been vocal about the impact WTR has had on the trajectory of his life.

“This program is absolutely life-changing.” Rosser said, “Students who participate not only grow as athletes but develop life skills and learn life lessons that follow them into adulthood.”

Now a financial analyst, Rosser participated in Work to Ride as a young boy and used the skills he acquired to become 2015 Polo Training Foundation Male Intercollegiate Polo Player of the Year. He tells the story of his remarkable polo journey in his recently published memoir, Crossing the Line: A Fearless Team of Brothers and the Sport that Changed Their Lives Forever.

The McCausland Foundation is one of several leadership donors to the project. Peter Ernst, Director of the McCausland Foundation stated: “The McCausland Foundation has been honored to support the Work to Ride program since 2017. We are delighted this important project is underway and enthusiastic about WTR's goal of giving more children the WTR experience for years to come.”

Founded in 1994, WTR has impacted the lives of hundreds of students through its year-round, evidence-informed, equestrian programs that promote discipline, self-esteem, motivation, social development, life skills, academic achievement, and physical fitness. Student participants work to clean and maintain the stables and care for the horses in exchange for lessons in various equine sports, of which polo is a perennial favorite. WTR made history when three of its polo players became the first all-African American team to win the United States Polo Association's National Interscholastic Championship in 2011.

About Work to Ride

Work to Ride is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that provides constructive activities centered on horsemanship, equine sports, and education to under-resourced youth from ages 7 to 18 years-old while creating positive outcomes for student participants since 1994. The program is housed at Chamounix Stables, located in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. In addition to the Work to Ride program, Chamounix Equestrian Center engages the community at large through various equestrian programs; including horseback riding lessons, summer camp, discovery days and polo program. For information about Work to Ride, or to make a donation, go to www.worktoride.net.

The post Work To Ride: Equine Program For Under-Resourced Youth Breaks Ground On State-Of-The-Art Facility appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Proposals Related To Colic Research Sought; Funding Available

Morris Animal Foundation is now accepting proposals for research studies on equine colic, with a specific focus on the intestinal tract. Grant applications are due by Monday, September 27, 2021, 4:59 p.m. EST., and will be funded in the 2022 fiscal year.

Proposals should advance the knowledge and understanding of one or more of these areas for colic: risk factors, prevention or early detection, feeding and nutrition, and pathophysiology. The Foundation is not accepting new proposals or resubmissions on other topics under this request for proposals.

[Story Continues Below]

Morris Animal Foundation is one of the largest nonprofit organizations worldwide that funds health studies benefiting horses, cats, dogs, llamas, alpacas and wildlife. The Foundation currently is funding 150 studies encompassing a broad spectrum of species and diseases, with approximately $3.3 million in new research funds disbursed annually.

Each year, the Foundation opens four separate calls for its major funding areas – equine, feline, canine and wildlife. This year's equine topic is based on responses to recent surveys of both horse owners and veterinarians which indicated colic as the area most in need of further research.

To be considered for funding, applications are reviewed and rated based on scientific rigor and impact for veterinarians and horse owners by the Foundation's scientific advisory board, comprised of leaders in the international equine research community.

Grant types awarded by the Foundation include Established Investigator, First Award, Fellowship and Pilot Study.

Read more here.

The post Proposals Related To Colic Research Sought; Funding Available appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

‘By Showing Compassion For One Life, We Can Mend Many More’: Merck Research Horses Find A New Job

Merck Animal Health's equine division periodically conducts research on their product's efficacy. But what happens to the study horses when the research is complete? Click below to find out how Merck made sure the horses used in an EPM study had a soft place to land—specifically one where they would still be helping.

Watch below to see where they ended up.

 

The post ‘By Showing Compassion For One Life, We Can Mend Many More’: Merck Research Horses Find A New Job appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Prisma Partners With B.W. Furlong & Associates, Company To Receive Inaugural Imaging System

Prisma has come to mutually agreeable terms with B.W. Furlong & Associates to be the recipient of Prisma's first robotic imaging system. This agreement represents a significant milestone that validates the equine veterinary community's demand for Prisma's novel technology that produces full-body imaging of a conscious and standing horse.

“Our strategy in establishing relationships with some of the country's largest and most prestigious practices was twofold,” said Michael Silver, Prisma's founder and CEO.

“Firstly, these practices were an invaluable resource during the early development process that ensured that the system would work well for the equine patient. Secondly, as we approach commercial readiness, we want to have a few early systems out in the field to ensure they will function perfectly prior to scalable operations. Meeting or exceeding our customer's expectations is of paramount importance.”

Prisma and B.W. Furlong have been in discussions for nearly a year, during which time the advancement of the system's development and functionality were able to be demonstrated and documented.

“It's undeniable that Prisma's system's capability to perform distal limb and head C.T. imaging of a conscious horse, plus image the axial skeleton and abdomen represents a material advancement for equine diagnostics and their health and welfare,” said B.W. Furlong's founder Brandan Furlong, MVB MRCVS. “We've been able to monitor and vet the progress of the system's development and are excited by the prospect of getting their inaugural system.  We're equally enthusiastic about having this technology to perform more comprehensive diagnostics and deliver exceptional patient care.”

Silver estimates that the system will be ready for installation by late 2021. Prisma is in discussions with several other top veterinary practices as additional potential candidates to receive one of its early systems.

Learn more about Prisma here.

Learn more about B.W. Furlong here.

The post Prisma Partners With B.W. Furlong & Associates, Company To Receive Inaugural Imaging System appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights