Magnolia, Texas – Hope and renewal are at the core of Inspiration Ranch, a Magnolia nonprofit that provides equine-assisted services to individuals with physical, emotional, and social disabilities.
However, the organization is now reeling from significant storm damage.
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Volunteers rolled up their sleeves to clean up much of the mess, but the ranch is still facing thousands of dollars in damages.
High winds and heavy rain swept through the area twice over the Memorial day weekend, it uprooted large trees and scattering debris across the ranch’s 40 acres.
The estimated damage totals between $25,000 and $35,000.
This damage initially posed a risk to the start of the ranch’s summer sessions, which serve dozens of individuals through its therapeutic riding and mental health programs.
While volunteers and staff worked together to ensure that summer sessions would not be canceled, the financial burden remains heavy.
MG Tindall, president and CEO of Inspiration Ranch, spoke about the storm’s impact. She explained that the trouble began with a storm on Friday and escalated with a second wave on Monday night.
“Monday night, the second wave came through, and we got hit really hard then,” Tindall said. “We had trees that went down on our family center, probably about 22 trees across the property went down. They hit a lot of the fence lines, picked up a shed that we use in mental health, and tore it up. We got rain into our arena and got our footing wet, so it was a significant amount more of damage.”
Inspiration Ranch is special for many reasons. The organization operates two main programs: a therapeutic riding program and a mental health program.
The therapeutic riding program serves children and adults with special needs, with a significant portion of clients diagnosed with autism, cerebral palsy, and Down syndrome.
In fact, the ranch serves 53 different diagnoses, with many clients having multiple conditions.
“The riding has a huge therapeutic value,” Tindall said. “The physical benefits are obvious; when you ride, you’re gaining that core strength. It also has a cognitive side that helps retrain the brain.”
The mental health program focuses on high-trauma clients, including women who have been victims of sex trafficking, abuse survivors, and at-risk teens.
If you would like to help the ranch you can visit: About Us | inspirationranch