Here are Excerpts from Rob and Veronica's speeches from the grand opening.  Thank you to everyone who made this day possible:

From Rob:
"First, Lets all thank Stephanie Benz, Judy Pequet, and everyone who contributed to helping get ready for this exciting day.  Thank you."

A recap of The Horse Boy Method Day can be read in a separate post here.

"Many, Many, Many, M A N Y ..people have helped financially to make today possible and there is not enough time in the day to thank you all individually, but we do want to thank every one of you here and many more who are not able to be here, for the incredible gift you have purchased for this community. Together with the help of this group of volunteers and staff here today, all of volunteers who have come before you, this board of directors, our generous advisors, I am very happy to say.....WE DID IT!!! You have all invested, and hopefully will continue to invest a part of your life to the service of your community, and as Rupert so accurately summed up some of his comments yesterday "It Takes a Village to raise a child or adult with special needs." So please give yourselves a round of applause for what you are doing to help your community. Thank you.

Veronica and I have been dreaming of getting LifeStriders to a larger indoor facility since the winter of 2005 and our Board of directors and advisors have been working tirelessly to try and make this happen for this community.  In 2009, Don Koepp took a look at all of our efforts to date and decided he would volunteer to chair the Expansion Fundraising Effort for LifeStriders and lead it to this day.  Don's commitment to this project has not wavered once, and with the combined effort of everyone here and mentioned, this day of LifeStriders owning its own indoor riding facility has been realized and we are all thankful to Don for helping to make this happen. 

Unfortunately Don could not be here today due to an illness, but his wife Linda is here and if you see her perhaps you could express your gratitude, to her, of Don's and her efforts to guiding and working toward today's glory. Please give a round of applause for Don's volunteer efforts.

LifeStriders has completed phase 1 of a 3 phase build out.  In Phase 1 we needed to first establish a safe an efficient place to give lessons and do work.  Dan Swinehart of Infinity Custom Homes volunteered his time, friends time, and resources to making this happen and we all owe him a debt of gratitude.   Thank you Dan and all of your contractors and friends ,for lending your expertise, time, and materials to continuing to help make this dream a realty for this community.   

I also want to give a special thanks to Steve Lirette for volunteering all of his time and Electrical expertise to building out the electrical for this facility.  This has been a HUGE savings to the organization and we are thankful to you.

Another special thanks goes to Dave Schalk and Sara Eagleboy for their volunteer help painting and creating signage for LifeStriders.  Dave is an accomplished painter and artist and we are lucky to have someone of his caliber helping make the facility look great!

Lastly I want to take take a minute to thank the person who has been the shepherd for this program for the last 6 years.  Veronica Sosa, has braved some interesting days of finding odd shaped potatoes in the paddock, saving baby deer and watching robots diffuse strange packages while giving a lessons, chasing horses around the neighborhood in 40 degree sleet, and putting up with her husband's whims and visions of a therapeutic riding center for the last 6 years.  She is a long way from her homes in Argentina, the Valley,  and her core skill set, and yet throughout this journey she has been a rock and figurehead for LifeStriders and all of you since its beginning.  None of this would have happened without her/your efforts, and as we begin passing the torch to the next generation of shepherds for LifeStriders, we all want her to know that we are all forever thankful for what she has done for this community."

From Veronica:
Many of you have heard the LifeStriders’ Story before and know about how Rob and I envisioned starting a therapeutic program that offered a more integrative approach to working with families and people with special needs. Since LifeStriders began in our back yard in 2005, we dreamed big…really big. Every year since then, many of you have shared in wonderful memories that were created there. You have heard the heartwarming stories and strides that our kids and volunteers have made when we highlight our yearly LifeStrider of the Year recipients at our events. Matthew’s always stand out to me because in our first year, we were able to see him  take those first assisted steps and Omar went from barely being able to sit up, to riding hands-free on his horse. He argued with me every step of the way but I have pictures to prove that he rode with a fabulous smile that touched every one of us. Nicole struggled with a number of social issues. That first summer she cleaned parts of a horse she knew not existed, she mentored young riders and new volunteers, continuously helps us train new staff, now has a real part-time job while maintaining excellent grades at school and was recently represented LifeStriders at the Women of Distinction Awards Luncheon where LifeStriders was recognized and received a grant from the Women and Girls Fund of Waukesha County. This year, Carley bravely climbed back onto her horse following an injury…. Those steps, those smiles, those accomplishments and that bravery defines LifeStriders. This is who we are. LifeStriders are those volunteers who rush here after work and school to help make therapeutic riding happen for over 4000 individual riding lessons since 2005. Lori taught as a volunteer therapeutic riding instructor for 5 years at LifeStriders before coming on board as one of our program coordinators.

Let’s talk about dreaming big…almost three years ago Barb and I toured this place when we heard that it might be coming on the market. After seeing a number of other places, we knew from the first moment we walked in that this was going to be the home of LifeStriders. We were also very aware that it exceeded what we could afford. I would drive by and say to myself “this is it…we found it”. When my parents visited from Argentina, I would drive them through very slowly explaining why this was it. I wanted this indoor arena so badly every time we had to cancel lessons because the weather was bad or when it became too cold to ride outdoors. It was a big dream for us then…but today, because of the incredible support that we received from so many generous people, the dream is a reality. This March we began lessons and added many new riders. Lifestriders added advanced riding lessons to accommodate our more experienced participants, Liz run’s the Traumatic Brain Injury class for adults and seniors and Is about to launch the LifeStriders Heroes Program that will target veterans with Spinal cord injuries. Ann Carl and Liz plan to expand the social skills program again this year. 

Brenna’s parents were kind enough to share with us the some of the improvements they have seen in their child since she began to ride.  In the first 3 months, we have been amazed and shocked at the positive impact it has had on our daughter and our family.  We, along with her therapists and teachers have noticed significant improvements in her academic skills, communication skills and most importantly with her anxiety. Each week we have been impressed with the different exercises the therapists have put Brenna and her team through.  We have spent years working on throwing and catching with Brenna, she got on a horse and can do both!  LifeStriders has helped us as parents of a child with special needs make connections with other parents.  Riding Cody has given Brenna (and our family) something to look forward to every weekend…

When one of our riders speaks his first words, or when they play catch for the first time, make and sustain eye contact, ride independently…these are big dreams. We are so excited for what is yet to come for LifeStriders. Because of all of the people who have been a part of this great community that has formed around this cause. When I come here and see everyone working hard and coming together for the people we serve, I realize that LifeStriders brings out the best of who we are. It has done that from the very beginning and it will continue to do that for years to come.

Thank you for joining us in this celebration. Thank you for making this possible.