Incorporated in 2011, Hoof and Harness began accepting students thru the Therapeutic Riding Academy of Knoxville, (TRAK). This facility relocated in 2014 and we then moved to our new facility, located in Strawberry Plains, Tennessee.
David and Beth Nelson, founders, lead and guide the organization, receiving referrals from area schools, doctors, therapists and parents who have seen the benefits of our program. Both founders are certified Carriage Driver Instructors through SpiritHorse International, based in Corinth Texas. We have witnessed the power of physical interaction with horses to enhance quality of life with our students. We have watched the delight on the faces of our students as they experience the sheer joy of touching our horses and even witnessed a 24 year old student speak her first word from the carriage.
Mission Statement:
The objective statement of Hoof and Harness Experiential Learning, Inc. is to promote and enhance the quality of life experiences for physically, emotionally and mentally challenged individuals through safe and effective physical interaction with equines. We achieve our objective by providing Equine Assisted Learning to include horse grooming instruction, literacy and cart driving lessons, plus we provide trauma informed Equine Assisted Therapy.
COWBOY CARNIVAL 2024
We will be kicking off the 2024 season at Hoof and Harness with our sixth annual fundraiser – Cowboy Carnival! In conjunction with Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial, H&H is excited to present an immersive farm experience that promises to be bigger and better than ever! We would love for you and your family to experience the “Cowboy Carnival” Saturday April 13, 2024, 11:00am-3:00pm (opening ceremonies start at 11:15 and gate opens at 10:45). This is a fantastic event for families! You will be able to park and walk around the...
read moreTHANK YOU
We had a large ask this week – $5,000 to fund equine therapy for four students for the year. Thanks to your generosity we not only met our fundraising goal, we exceeded it! Your contributions raised over $5,100 this week. With our matching grant of $5,000 we brought in over $10,000 – all thanks to you! As a reminder, students and their families are never charged for our services. We are funded solely by donations and couldn’t exist without your help. Thank you for your giving spirit this year. You funded many...
read moreGIVING TUESDAY 2023
Last year your Giving Tuesday donations helped us secure funding for the initial construction phase of our trauma focused therapy building! We plan to add regular therapy sessions to our program as soon as possible. The building is in place, walls and windows are up! We’re getting close thanks to you! To date our program has provided over 8,400 individualized lessons, all funded entirely by donations. We are a no charge, donation only facility. All our services are provided free of charge to our students and their families. Our goal is...
read moreCOWBOY CARNIVAL 2023
We will be kicking off the 2023 season at Hoof and Harness with our fifth annual fundraiser – Cowboy Carnival! In conjunction with Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial, H&H is excited to present an immersive farm experience that promises to be bigger and better than ever! We would love for you and your family to experience the “Cowboy Carnival” Saturday April 15, 2023, 11:00am-2:00pm (opening ceremonies start at 11:15 and gate opens at 10:45). This is a fantastic event for families! You will be able to park and walk around the...
read moreSAVE THE DATE! Cowboy Carnival April 15th!
Save the date! Cowboy Carnival, our event-filled fundraiser, will be on April 15th from 11-2. Opening ceremonies start at 11:15. More details plus a full lineup of activities and schedule of events coming soon! We can’t wait to see...
read moreGIVING TUESDAY 2022
Last year your generous Giving Tuesday donations helped us add a new therapy horse to our program! This allowed us to serve more people and helped ease the burden on our aging rockstar, Silver. “Pokie” had a fantastic year hanging out with our students! Pokie in action! Our program has provided over 4,500 individualized lessons, all funded entirely by donations. We are a no charge, donation only facility. All of our services are provided free of charge to our students and their families. Needs continue to arise in our program as...
read moreWhy Therapeutic Carriage Driving?
Therapeutic Carriage Driving is central to our program. It is a unique form of equine assisted therapy, which has many of the same benefits of therapeutic riding. Hoof & Harness provides this much needed therapy using two-wheel horse carts and miniature horses to benefit the physical, mental, and emotional needs of the special needs community. Our individualized lesson plans include elements to target improvements in: *Coordination*fine and gross motor skills development*spatial awareness*bilateral movement*increase in...
read moreCowboy Carnival 2022
We will be kicking off the 2022 season at Hoof and Harness with our fifth annual fundraiser – Cowboy Carnival! In conjunction with Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial, H&H is excited to present an immersive farm experience that promises to be bigger and better than ever! We would love for you and your family to experience the “Cowboy Carnival” Saturday April 23, 2022, 11:00am-2:00pm (opening ceremonies start at 11:15). This is a fantastic event for families! You will be able to park and walk around the H&H facilities, enjoy...
read moreTHANK YOU!
For our “Giving Tuesday” campaign in November we had a large ask – $3,000 for a new, trained, miniature horse for our therapy program. You responded in a big way and we met our fundraising goal! After a few months of searching, we brought our new therapy horse “Pokie” home over the weekend. Pokie has a show background and has already begun program specific training on our farm. He is adjusting well to farm life and is a very calm, caring miniature horse. He is five years old and has a long life of loving on our...
read moreGIVING TUESDAY 2021
One of our therapy horses, Silver, is needing to see his workload decreased. This year we have a big ask – $3,000 for a new, trained miniature horse for our specialized therapy program.
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