41 Johnson Road, New Sweden, Maine 04762, United States
Why I Do What We Do, Kelly
I grew up in South Dakota on the family farm that was homesteaded in the 1800's. As an adult I moved away to pursue a career as an underground miner, which took me to Alaska where I met my wife. I had always hoped to get back to farm life and when she was ready to relocate we moved to Northern Maine. As we gradually added animals to the farm and I experienced my own growth as I became aware of how my own feelings were impacting my relationship with my herd, I became interested in the human-horse connection. I also realized that equines are intuitive and have incredible healing powers.
Training in Equine Assisted Learning and working with my own clients has been amazing. I never knew how much healing could be done through the human-horse bond and now I want to share this gift with everyone!
The Why For Each Program
Farm Tours / Visits
We believe everyone can benefit from a farm visit where they are encouraged to interact with horses, donkeys and mules. We agree with a UC Davis study that reports:
- Nature can help us improve our thinking, reasoning, and other mental abilities
- Nature can improve physical wellness
- Being outside can improve your mental health
We feel fortunate to have the land and equines and feel it would be selfish to keep it to ourselves.
Hooves 4 Healing Heroes
Veterans and First Responders are instrumental in keeping the country and communities safe. We owe a debt of gratitude to them and their families but are failing miserably. The suicide rates of this population is 1.5 times higher than the general population and services are scarce at best.
We know that Equine Assisted Learning is utilized the US Department of Veterans Affairs as part of their Whole Health Program because it works. Horses are able to work with Veterans and First Responders because “horses are naturally responsive to verbal and nonverbal cues and thus provide good feedback to the veterans about how they are communicating,” continues Dr. Neria. “Horses are patient and nonjudgmental, allowing opportunities for veterans to make mistakes and learn from them." https://www.nyp.org/newsletters/prof-adv/psych/equine-therapy-helps-ptsd#:~:text=%E2%80%9CHorses%20are%20naturally%20responsive%20to,mistakes%20and%20learn%20from%20them.
We have the certifications to work with this group, we have the motivation to help facilitate the healing and we have the herd that is ready to join in partnership with these warriors.
Basic 101 Horse Ownership / Pick My Brain
We have laughed, made mistakes, cried, lost animals and got new ones, all the while learning as we went and loving every second. We are not horse experts but with our combined skills sets, Bracal with google and her developed relationships with the local horse community and Kelly with his expertise in all other things farming, we have learned a great deal in the past 5 years of horse, donkey and mule ownership.
We know many people who dream of "one day owning an equine" but are afraid or don't know where to start. Thats was us too, but luckily we connected with the right people and received not only support but encouragement. It was invaluable and now we know we are at a place to offer this to others. We are the first to laugh at ourselves, the first to admit we don't know everything and the first to be willing to celebrate your desire to make this a reality in your own life.
Equine Assisted Learning
We love Equine Assisted Learning. It is fun! It is powerful! We learn things about ourselves and each other everyday by paying attention to how our herd is responding to us. We enjoy facilitating EAL with groups of people who had no idea what to expect and walk away with a smile on their face and something to think about because they learned something new.
We enjoy making connections with the participants and watching their journey of self-discovery and relationship building. We feel honored when they experience genuine emotions during their sessions and their equine partner reciprocates. We love watching our rescues heal their own wounds as they heal others.
Support A Better Day Counseling and Farms, Donate Today
Our Mission
Our mission at A Better Day Counseling and Farms is to provide experiences that foster healing and growth through the equine-human bond. Our work will contribute to the decline in the high suicide rates of veterans and first responders, increase individual resilience which will contribute to healthier communities and stronger family ties. Our long term goals are to provide year round services with the addition of an enclosed area and to secure enough funding that participants in the Hooves 4 Healing Heroes Program participate free of charge or for a minimal fee.
A Better Day Counseling and Farms, LLC is a for profit company. However, your support will help us:
- make services available at a reduced costs to participants that are otherwise unable to afford our services.
- help us reach our long term goal of providing year round services with the addition of an indoor arena.
- continue to meet the ongoing needs of the rescues in our care.
In exchange for your donation, not only will you be instrumental in helping meet the mental health crisis needs in our community but you will receive advertisement on our website page. Advertising your business with us will yield the tax benefit of being a deductible for your business expenses.
Program Donations
You can make a donation for a specific program. Donations will be applied to participants needing some financial assistance or directly to program needs. Veterans and first responders will have priority.
Herd Care / Arena Goals
Donations can be made to the rescues and will be utilized for their ongoing needs. Additionally, if you would like to support our goal of providing year round services and can contribute to the indoor arena funds, we would be very appreciative.