The program stated that if someone would volunteer a days work at an approved charity (Give a Day) then Disney would give them a free Ticket to Disney World (Get a Day). I sent in the information on our Heavens Special Children charity including the IRS 501(c)3 documents and within a week we were approved and our charity was now listed on Disney's website. I said, that's cool, maybe we can get a few volunteers. Well, was I ever wrong, we did not get a few volunteers, we got hundreds of offers to help, WOW! By the time the program ended we had over 900 people come to help us at the farm. We built the barn, built the fences, raked the fields to remove trip hazards like stones and roots. We even built a 1,000 SF greenhouse that we used for organic hydroponic vegetables. Several mothers with autistic children told me organic food helped their kids stay calm.
We got UF students to sign up to be side walkers that are needed on each side of the horse to keep the kids from falling. We also got people who guided the horses, people that knew how to read the horses eyes, ears and emotions to make sure they stayed calm.
The last piece of the team was the licensed physical therapist who rotated around the child doing various types of stimulating therapy exercises.
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