Facilities
We are Located in Herdman Quebec, a small rural community in the municipality of Hinchinbrooke, a one-hour drive southwest of Montreal, In 1990, we became Quebec’s first accredited therapeutic riding center.
In the early years, the Center’s services were provided on a small private farm to a relatively small number of students. But, over the years, as the Center’s reputation grew, so did its number of students. Eventually, the Center outgrew the facilities on the farm, and needed to find a new home.
In July 1995, Ted Sparks and Connie Bessette, the parents of one of the Center’s students, came to the rescue and they graciously donated three acres of land from a large piece of property they owned in Herdman, with the understanding that it was to be used to create a new home for Lucky Harvest.
The next years were busy ones as the heavily wooded land was cleared, and the site prepared. Plans were drawn up, and financing secured. By the year 2000, this work was completed, and a 30 ft. x 6o ft. stable was erected. The stable contains a feed room, an equipment room, and eight large box stalls. An outdoor riding ring was also built along with two paddocks, one for the horses and one for the ponies.
The setting is quiet, restful, and without distraction, all conditions conducive to our mission. Including the spectacular fall colors.
Following the building of the stable, plans began to take shape for erecting a modern, steel-framed, indoor arena so that lessons could be conducted in comfort regardless of the weather outside. In 2002, the arena, which measures 60′ x 120′, was constructed. In 2003, a washroom, office, and volunteer and parent lounge were built within the arena.
During all the construction phases, it took a tremendous amount of work for our organization to realize its dreams. Dozens of volunteers worked very hard to get the work completed, and even today, this tradition continues. Volunteers do almost all of our building maintenance and repairs. Our grounds maintenance crew, and the people who exercise our horses, are volunteers.
In the spring of 2008 we received a grant from Ronald McDonald House Charities to replace the footing in our indoor arena. We were able to remove the old dusty sand and replace it with a compacted sub base and a top quality sand and rubber mixture. This makes a much safer footing and has eliminated almost all the dust. We were also fortunate to be able to add natural lighting to the arena by replacing the aluminum siding with clear panels. The entire floor of the stable and entrance to the arena is now covered with rubber matts, making access to the stable easier and more even for our students.It is hard to believe how far we have come, but there is more that needs to be done. We need to do some drainage and repair work to the horse paddocks, and eventually add additional paddocks so that the horses can be moved when needed. We need to complete the ventilation and insulation of the arena, build a hay storage barn and a secure place to store tools and equipment.
For the moment, our focus is on increasing our funding, paying down our mortgage, and continuing to operate our services to our students in the best way possible. We are also continuing to develop long range plans for further development, so that when the opportunity arises to complete these projects, we will be ready.
