While there may not be enough room on the internet for ALL our people are thankful for, we are going to give it a shot! The Red Barn has an extremely grateful staff.
Joy (AKA Mama Joy) is thankful:
- When I meet someone in the community and they tell me they’ve heard about someone who has benefitted from our programs.
- When everyone pitches in to make sure the stalls get cleaned and all the envelopes get addressed.
- When everyone works together and we fly like The Blue Angels.
- When people say they are praying for us.
- When the temperature doesn’t get below freezing so we don’t have to worry about pipes freezing.
- When we are able to get the horses all in before it starts raining cats and dogs.
- For the wagon that helps us carry the shavings to the stalls.
- When someone drops off a whole load of supplies that they’ve been collecting and it’s exactly what we need. There are no coincidences!
- For loyal friends who stick together to share faith, hope, and love.
- For BIG fans in the lower barn.
Sylvie says that she is thankful for:
- Finalizing the adoption with Daisa and having her as my sister.
- Having an amazing family willing to love everyone no matter what.
- Having a dad I am proud of, and being able to work with him here.
- Having an amazing family let me keep my horses at their property so I get to see them every day.
- Friends that, even when they move 12 hours away, stay in touch with you and come and visit.
- An amazing staff that is willing to help teach me AND an amazing workplace that cares so much about their staff and their horses! It’s been really amazing to get to do what I have always wanted to do and have coworkers that are so tightly knit. They always have your back and are willing to take the extra second to explain something to you or help you- on or off the clock!
- Last but not least, I am thankful for God and the number of people in my life that show his unconditional love!
Alexis is thankful for Jessie (yes, some of us have favorite horses) and the indoor arena. The indoor arena is the place where riders can ride and teachers can teach- out of the elements. Of course, Alexis is forever grateful to Milton, our farrier extraordinaire, and all of the vets who take excellent care of the horses who work so hard for our students!
“Birthday months. Because cake.” – Everyone
In typical Ashley style, here is her fabulously flavorful list!
- I am thankful for my fave breakfast restaurant being on my way to work.
- I am thankful for the goats and for Joy for deciding to get them. They consume my heart.
- I am thankful for Joy. She has changed Reid’s life and brought such change within his family. I don’t think she will ever realize how much the barn has changed that family.
- I am thankful for fingerless gloves so I can be warm but still open a gate in the winter.
- I am thankful for warm socks in the winter and an amazing selection of appropriate tank tops in the summer.
- I am thankful for white chocolate mocha coffee creamer now being sold where I already shop.
- I am thankful for erasable pens and white out- because I make a lot of mistakes.
- I am thankful for the golf cart and toro. They keep my old knees from feeling even older.
- I am thankful for RC (rafter cat) and his morning greetings.
- I am thankful for all of my students.
- The staff I work with is probably the best thing on this list though. They make this just even more fun than it already is. Everyone has a story and a purpose and we come from diverse upbringings, but we always get along (for the most part). I am so grateful that I work with people who want me to succeed as much as I want them to succeed. That is rare and special.
Hannah and Shannon, resident barn nerds, are thankful for Salesforce, our amazing database of ALL THE THINGS! Hannah and Grace are thankful for lists. Yep. Lists. Shannon lives on the Gulf Coast where there are virtually no fall colors, so she is extremely grateful to come to work and see vibrant leaves all around during the fall. Grace is also thankful for the whole team of people she works with- staff and volunteers alike!
Amanda says “to work at a place like The Red Barn is a gift. I am grateful for the opportunity to get to know the amazing students and families served at the barn. I am grateful for the generous donors and the support they provide to such a wonderful program and mission. I am grateful for the staff who pour out their energy, talents, and abilities every single day in all that they do. It is truly a remarkable place filled with remarkable people.”
CHEESE. Our instructors mentioned being thankful for cheese. And BABIES!
Courtney is thankful “to work for an organization that allows me to help provide experiences for people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience what we offer. Being outside, being with horses, being surrounded by loving, accepting people is healing for everyone. I’m thankful for quiet barn days working with the best horses ever. I’m thankful to see how our participants transform around the horses. And how our horses meet the needs of our participants. I’m thankful to have a job that feeds my soul, fills my heart, and keeps my mind open daily. I’m thankful to see how all the elements come together to make what we do possible. I’m thankful for a director who looks after all of us and treats us like family. I’m thankful to have such big-hearted co-workers.” Some words are so sweet that you can’t paraphrase them.
Chelsey: “I’m thankful for all the helping hands, laughter, and the opportunity to do my job outdoors! Rain, shine.. or snow! But I am especially thankful for the sunshine.”
Rachel is grateful for the staff eating lunch together, opportunities to interact with kids and horses every day, weekly staff meetings to voice our opinions and stay in the loop, and co-workers to have fun with and learn from.
Wyspr is thankful for “four-legged co-workers, a facility that is so well maintained that it makes my job instructing seem easy, laughter between staff and volunteers, an easy way to compile lesson notes (SALESFORCE!!), freedom to create lesson plans tailored to the individual student, and ongoing education and learning.”
Jordan says “I am most thankful for our staff. They are some of the strongest and most caring souls I have ever met! Everyone encourages each other to be the best self that they can be, and they bring out the best in all people that walk through here.”
Across the board gratefulness for:
- Hot things- hot chocolate, heaters, hand warmers, fingerless gloves, hot water, NOT FROZEN pipes, jackets, tall boots.
- Amazing volunteers who are prompt and eager to learn and all the times when God sends the exact volunteer we need with the exact skills we need at exactly the right time, and also who help us see things we might otherwise have missed.
- Cold bottled water in the summer. Shout out to Motion Industries!
- OUR DONORS! Thank you, donors, for allowing us to share faith, hope, and love with everyone who enters our gates!
Click here to watch Jeremiah and Lauren’s story and hear how grateful they are to our donors and supporters.