This Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in San Martin, a group of
students and adults will be volunteering community service time to
help local equestrians and our public parks through the
“Halters for Rangers” program.
EDITOR:
This Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in San Martin, a group of students and adults will be volunteering community service time to help local equestrians and our public parks through the “Halters for Rangers” program. The volunteers will be washing, performing a safety inspection, and color-coordinating over 100 horse halters and lead ropes that have been donated to the program.
Equestrian individuals and organizations around the Bay Area are joining together in donating used but safe horse halters and lead ropes, which will be given to park rangers who work in Bay Area parks with equestrian access. The halters and lead ropes will be kept in the rangers’ vehicles, for use in equestrian emergencies with loose horses or riding accidents.
Although not common events, rangers and other park employees are ill-equipped to capture loose horses. With state and local budgets being cut, it is unlikely that they would ever be provided with this equipment. So Bay Area equestrians are coming together, to provide every park ranger who requests one, with a horse halter and lead rope.
This Saturday a number of youths and adults are donating their time to clean the over 100 halters and lead ropes that have been donated thus far. The idea was spawned this past August, when a group of friends decided to have a picnic and horse tack swap meet at a local park. The event was advertised on the chat boards of the Bay Area Equestrian Network. At the picnic a local park ranger said, “I wish I had a halter in my truck, I can’t tell you how many times I have needed one.”
Martha McNiel, founder of DreamPowerHorsemanship (a non-profit therapeutic horsemanship program which was selling tack at the picnic), handed her a halter and lead rope from the tack swap. Martha then made the statement, “We should start a drive for all of our local park rangers.” “Halters for Rangers” was born.
Many members of the Ohlone Riders (http://ohloneriders.tripod.com/), the local unit of the Backcountry Horsemen of California, were present at that picnic and they agreed to sponsor the halter drive. Being on the Board of Directors for both the Ohlone Riders and DreamPowerHorsemanship, I offered to facilitate the project and oversee the distribution of the halters, as well as creating training materials for the rangers. All rangers who receive halters and lead ropes will also receive training and instruction materials on how to use them. Martha McNiel is coordinating the collection and cleaning of the halters and lead ropes.
This Saturday the project moves into the second phase, cleaning and inspecting the donated halters and lead ropes, in preparation for distribution. We have been in contact with many of the local parks administrators and supervisors and there has been a very positive response from the parks systems. The Santa Clara County parks system has requested 25 halters and training on how to catch and halter a loose horse. Initial contacts wih local state parks has resulted in a great deal of interest. Parks systems in other counties will be contacted as the project moves forward.
Used but safe halters and lead ropes are still being collected. Anyone wishing to donate used halters and/or lead ropes to “Halters for Rangers” should contact Martha McNiel at (408) 686-0535.
Saturday’s event takes place at 12425 Foothill Avenue between Church and San Martin Avenue. For details on this event or any of the participants please contact me at (408) 523-7640.
Garry Stauber, Aromas
