Riding for the SaddleUp! Brand
When Shery McDonald-Galbreath started the SaddleUp! Foundation five years ago, her mission wasn't just to teach children and adults to ride. Among her goals was having students learn to respect the horses and each other and to take pride in their work inside and outside of the arena.
"Taking pride in your work" is among the 10 elements of James P. Owen's Code of the West and it's a tenet that Shery and all those involved with the SaddleUp! Foundation have no trouble following. Indeed Shery, her husband Jim and others involved with the group were able to demonstrate their immense pride and commitment to the SaddleUp! program at a reception attended by 200+ people on a beautiful Colorado evening. For the reception, sponsored by Vectra Bank, the elegant environs of the Cherry Hills Country Club were transformed with ranch-like touches including the SaddleUp! logo topping a mock-ranch entrance, bright summer flowers and party favors of Greenmar Toffee wrapped in bandana print tissue.
Students from the riding program ranging in age from 7 to 70 welcomed the guests who gathered to hear remarks from James P. Owen, author of Cowboy Ethics , What Wall Street Can Learn from the Code of the West. The other special guests mingling in the crowd were brothers Josh, Jon and Jeremiah Peek, PRCA cowboys from Pueblo Colorado and the new spokesmen for the Foundation and Colorado's First lady, Frances Owens.
Also on hand, some of them in wheelchairs, were students who take part in the SaddleUp! Foundation Therapeutic Riding Program. The youths are gaining muscle strength, mobility, balance, self-esteem and confidence through riding.
"This is the best thing that has happened to us," says Laura Drotar, who's three year old daughter Jaeda Bessetta Drotar has a rare genetic disease, Prader Willi Syndrome. When Jaeda rides, it strengthens her muscles and keeps her back from curving, which will help her as her disease progresses. "We do occupational therapy, physical and speech therapy, but Hippotherapy is by far the best. And she loves horses so much, she has to sleep with a stuffed one every night," says her mother.
The SaddleUp! Foundation is having a custom saddle made for children like Katie Keeler, 11, who is a quadriplegic. "It means so much to her. She really loves horses and wants to ride more than anything in the world," says her mother Lee.
Shery's program goes a step beyond horsemanship, too, offering a new breed of etiquette classes for young people and providing them with excellent role models and experiences. Their poise and good manners were fully on display throughout the evening.
Jim Galbreath introduced his long-time friend and colleague Jim Owen, who talked about how he developed the Code of the West. Today, it's hard to pick up the paper each day without reading about another business scandal, Owen says. That's not the message and values we should be giving to our children. He remembers a simpler, more pure time when a handshake was enough to seal a deal and right and wrong were as clear as black and white. Those same principles can be applied to life today, he said, listing the elements of the code:
Live Each Day with Courage
Take Pride in Your Work
Always Finish What You Start
Do What Has to Be Done
Be Tough, But Fair
When You Make a Promise, Keep It
Ride for the Brand
Talk Less, Say More
Remember That Some Things Aren't For Sale
Know Where To Draw the Line
He encouraged audience members to talk about their favorite elements of the code and how they apply to their lives. Following his talk, Owen and the Peek brothers signed copies of the book for attendees.
"The great thing about SaddleUp! is that it goes beyond simply riding and training on horses," says Frances Owens, Colorado 's First Lady. "The extra component Shery adds is that she personifies ethics, manners and hard work. Since she's working with kids, she wants to be an example of integrity and good character and thinks it's just as important to go away with good manners and pride in your work as with the horse training. Most parents try to impart those qualities to their children, but it isn't always emphasized. I admire Shery for what she believes in and how she follows through," Owens says.
For more information on the SaddleUp! Foundation or to purchase a copy of the Cowboy Ethics book, please contact us.
