“Within her commitment to social justice, Ms Marie Olivier of Equistria believes in horses and the environment for therapeutic goals like psychomotor stimulation as a service to individuals with disabilities. Equistria Centre has been the base for the Therapeutic Horse-riding Service Learning project, involving Psychology Honours students, since 2005. Students work with pre-school children with neurodevelopmental diagnoses to stimulate psychomotor functioning stimulation and promote well-being. Ms Olivier believes in recognising and promoting strengths and capabilities in individuals with disabilities, thus providing invaluable training opportunities for both children with disabilities and students at Equistria”
– In recognition of Outstanding Service, Commitment and Excellence in the field of Community Engagement, Equistria Centre has received the Vice-Rector’s Award for Community Engagement from the University of the Free State.
A group of Dr Pravani Naidoo’s Psychology Honours students, at the University of the Free State, was honoured with the best postgraduate Service Learning award, involving the horse riding project, at a prize-giving function of the Faculty of the Humanities during 2016.
– UV Postgraduate students
Away from the hustle of city life lays a piece of land that graces any visitor with a sense of serenity. It compels you to inhale the earthy aroma that is laced with calm and a sense of peace. It settles the inner conflicts of the mind, frees you from your sense of urgency, and renews you with a vigour that is known to but the few who find their grounding in nature. And so this narrative drawing power has been the volitional force in the founding of a community service learning project based at Marie Olivier’s Equistria, called Therapeutic Horse Riding.
Under the supervision of Dr Pravani Naidoo from the Psychology Department at the University of the Free State, the project aims at the sensory-motoric, intellectual, and social stimulation of learners at the Lettie Fouché school. Through the involvement of Honours students in Psychology, the project has flourished to become an endeavour of growth that has mutually stimulated years of students and learners through its impact on the cognitive and affective grounds.
Through the establishment of familiarity, and shared moments that are real and unrefined in their genuineness, the students and learners conceive unique and deep-rooted bonds that have been seen to cause cascades of influence.
No experience is however separated from an emotional transfer between involved parties. The ultimate goal of any therapeutic horse riding session, is the mounting of, and activities on a horse by each of the children. The project strives to be a motivational drive in fostering a sense of self-esteem and self-efficacy. In this mounting lay the achievement that allows a child to barrel through the fear boundaries of insecurity, and discover their own unique sense of capabilities. And it is the hope of all supervisory personas, that this realisation and growth causes the shifts in their daily lives.
With its humble aims, its dedicated parties, and a staunch support of the gentle beasts that are the horses, the project is a developmental journey that moulds the perspective of the individual into a terrible need to give affection unconditionally and employ a service to the community that is the cause of many ripples through the casting of one stone.
– UFS Psychology Honours student
Gernus Oosthuizen
Working with horses
I am a teacher at a prestigious all boys school in Bloemfontein. I have been involved with coaching sport (specifically cricket and rugby) for 15 years. The last 7 years I coached the school’s 1st XV rugby team, and the last two years I was in charge of the rugby program at the school. I also suffer from adult ADHD symptoms and a slight case of OCD. All of this, even though I am a lover of sport and competition, added stress to my life, which resulted in strain on all my relationships, both at work and in my personal life. Since I started interacting with the horses at Equistria Centre, things started to shift in that regard. Spending time, and working with the horses is as therapeutic for me as for any person (child) that I work with on the horse. The calming effect that this interaction brings to my life cannot really be explained in words… My ADHD symptoms are much more manageable than a year ago, and the OCD is almost non-existent. I will recommend this type of therapy to literally any person, of any capability and of any age. It has changed my life into much calmer existence.
– AJ Mouton
It hardly seems like 10 months ago when we first entered Equistria as Therapeutic horse riding volunteers. Since then it has been a whirlwind of excitement, learning and growing. Being able to put smiles on the children’s faces was very fulfilling. Our experiences over the past year has deepened our passion and inspired us to dedicate our lives to the causes of community service. We are in awe at how fortunate we have been to be part of this community project. It has given us the tools and confidence to march forward into the next phases of our lives. A big thank you to all of those who were involved and made a contribution towards the success of this project.
– UFS Psychology Honours student
Thandeka