SUNSHINE THERAPEUTIC RIDING CENTER INC

Sunshine Therapeutic Riding Center (STRC) was organized as a 501-(c)3, Aug 26, 2019. (EIN 84-1747932). STRC was the vision of Katja Summerlin who, along with her husband, Zach, wanted her son who has Down Syndrome to have the option of accessing the therapeutic powers of horses through hippotherapy and therapeutic riding.

STRC’s goal is to be a premier equine-assisted therapy organization. By utilizing the therapeutic power of horses through hippotherapy and therapeutic riding, we can positively affect the lives and families of people with disabilities. Hippotherapy is where "occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology professionals use evidence-based practice and clinical reasoning in the purposeful manipulation of equine movement as a therapy tool to engage sensory, neuromotor and cognitive systems to promote functional outcomes" (American Hippotherapy Association). In short, it’s therapy on horseback that encourages exceptional growth in the areas of communication, motor, sensory, and cognition. The combination of the skilled therapist with the movement of the horse is a powerful treatment strategy to reach therapy goals.