Your 2026 January Newsletter

HWH Board Roster Update:

A great big thank you from our hearts to the Chino Valley Morning Lions for their generous donation and continued support of Horses with Heart.

Upcoming Horse Handler Trainings

It’s that time of year again, horses are coming back to Horses with Heart!

Are you new to horses? Would you like to have additional confidence around horses? Do you want to get involved in the Grooming Team or the Marvelous Minis program? If yes to any of these questions, one of these training sessions is for you!

If you have been, or want to be on the Wednesday morning Grooming Team, this is your training:

• March 11th Groomer Horse Handler Training 9:00 AM

• Please email your interest to Bonnie Moreau at bchere58@hotmail.com.

If you have been, or want to be on the a part of the Marvelous Minis Program, this training is for you:

• March 11th Marvelous Minis Horse Handler Training 1:00 PM

• Email your interest to Sherry Hoover at sherryhwh@gmail.com.

If you want more General Horse Handling or work your way to become a Horse Leader, or help with turnouts, this training is for you:

• February 28th General Horse Handler Training 1:00 – 2:30 PM

(Please note that if you would like to help with classes, you also need to attend a Safety Support Team Training). Email your interest to Sherry Hoover at sherryhwh@gmail.com.

***Some of the information for these trainings will overlap, so there is no need to attend multiple trainings. ***

Wish list for our horses!

Although our herd is enjoying their much needed time away, when they come back in February, we would love to shower them with gifts from you! 

If you would like to purchase a gift for our horses, see the attached for our Amazon Registry.

Marvelous Minis Update

We had to cancel the Minis for one event and postpone an assisted living visit due to equine virus concerns in December so we have no programs to recap. Even though the Minis weren’t able to participate in the Prescott Christmas parade, Sally Gray, Karen Kay, Margaret Kilian, Sandy Meadowcroft, and I walked with the United Way float to acknowledge the grant they gave the Marvelous Minis program! See photos of Rocky hugging Dr. Madelyn during an adjustment session and Rocky not loving wearing a saddle for a photo shoot!

During this down time, I went back over all the schools and assisted living visits that Rocky, Liberty, Brady, Frosty, Pirate, Tessa, Bobbi Sox, Paisley, Milo, Remy, Dance, Honey Bee and Lady Bug made since April 2025 and found the Minis were petted, groomed, hugged, and kissed by about 675 assisted living seniors and staff members, school kids and school staff, and generally brought smiles of joy and remembrance to all! That number doesn’t even include the people they met at community events such as the annual Polara picnic for autism awareness, the annual Prescott Valley Pinwheel Party for child abuse awareness, and the Big Brothers Big Sisters annual picnic.

The Marvelous Minis Program is an awesome outreach of Horses with Heart. It’s a joyful, meaningful experience that creates heart-warming moments that truly matter.

As you can tell, the MM program has grown explosively since the days of Trudy, Lisa Cuthbertson, me and Buttercup! Our Minis herd has expanded making it possible for us to schedule more visits and events per month. We have a wonderful slate of MM volunteers!

I’m looking for someone or someones to share program planning and orchestrating the programs at the sites with me. It will be difficult for me to attend all the programs that I envision us having with our 13 Minis. Please email me if you’re interested: hwhminis@gmail.com.

Working with these Minis is as fun as it is important—an experience that nourishes the soul and leaves you smiling! Can I get an “Amen” from all you MM volunteers out there?!

Mary Smith

♥️ Friendships of the Heart ♥️

We, at Horses with Heart, gain so much more through the opportunity to help others through the heart of the horse. As volunteers, we gain friendships that last forever. This group of ladies began their friendships in the beginning at WhistleStop Ranch in Dewey, some of us as early as 1993. We call ourselves The WhistleStop Gang (otherwise known as the "Old Timers"). The group meets every other month to catch up and hear about the exciting happenings at Horses with Heart. Several of this group are still volunteering at HwH.

Barn Buddies

Being a Barn Buddy is a great way to ensure that your equine buddies are happy and healthy. All donations made through the Barn Buddy program go towards horse care: veterinary care; feed; supplements; bedding; blankets; and other horse care expenditures which benefit our entire herd. This donation can be made in any amount and once or recurring. Your donation will benefit our entire herd.

Visit our site by clicking the button below.

In Loving Memory, Maureen Owen!

With nearly 20 years of dedication to Horses with Heart, Maureen has made a huge impact on the HwH family. Her years of service included time in the arena, in the office, in fundraising, and at events.

As Volunteer Coordinator, she made it her priority to make everyone who entered our facility feel welcomed and loved, and made sure they had a snack before they left. She mentored volunteers old and young.  During summer camps, she showed her creativity in craft projects for the participants.

As Bowl-A-Thon Chairperson, she gave 110% to make sure everything was ready to make it the best event ever. The raffle items were always displayed to their best advantage with her decorative touches.

Her love extended to our 4-legged partners as well. For many years, she provided winter homes and TLC to both Buttercup and Rocky.  

Maureen, we have many great memories to share, and you are DEARLY MISSED!

Winter Break Facility Upgrades:

There are many things happening right now at the Horses with Heart Ranch in Chino Valley. We are utilizing our winter break to accomplish some much-needed maintenance and upgrades.

Thanks to successful fundraising, we have been able to upgrade the front of all the horse stalls with a 4-rail pipe fence. Also, permanent posts were installed in the turnouts of the barn stalls. I don’t think Casey will be pushing those fences down anytime soon. First, many volunteers disassembled the horse pens so that we could level the stalls and improve the drainage. Second, we pulled out all the fence panels that are intended for cows. We have sold them and will replace them with horse panels. All stalls will be configured to give the horses the most space.

We have sent all recycling to the recyclers. Many piles of useless items have been taken to the dump. The remainder of the alfalfa has been sold and moved. Thank you to Bill Arsenalt for your assistance.

The office is receiving new outside fascia at the base, caulking, and paint, as well as upgraded lighting. The helmet shed and hospitality building will receive repairs and paint. Many gates and doors have been adjusted.

Today we emptied the upper field of all obstacle items and the round pen. The weeds will be burned, property graded, and a new obstacle course built. We hope to offer our ranch for open arenas, and this obstacle area will be a big draw. There are two Open Arenas days already planned for January 2026.

Thank you to A-One Fencing, Jose Murillo, for installing the fence upgrades. We appreciate the fine work and reasonable cost.

A big thank you to Garth Owens for the help with groundwork and leveling in many areas of the ranch. The Owens family is a wonderful and generous supporter of the Horses with Heart organization.

 Volunteer of the Month: JANE HUBBARD              

Jane is a volunteer extraordinaire! She is someone who has a very kind and positive personality and a willing heart. Jane has volunteered in many roles including our Safety Support Team as horse lead, Coach, and Sidewalker. She has been on our grooming team, turnout team, admin office team, and she even takes care of our horses that need Equiband and electrostim therapy. Even through injuries, Jane found ways to continue to volunteer this last year. What a trouper!  We love you Jane and are so grateful to have you as a volunteer.

1. How long have you been with Horses with Heart? I have been a volunteer for 6 years now. I started during the pandemic.

2. Why do you volunteer at HWH? I volunteer at HwH because I feel what we do makes a real difference in the lives of our riders and horses.

3. What is your favorite memory? One of my favorite memories is an event where we hosted a special afternoon for all the special needs kids at Prescott High School. Horse painting, horse shoe painting, games , line dancing and even an appearance of some of our Marvelous Minis. What I loved was the volunteers loved entertaining the kids. Everyone working together made it a great day!

4. What would you share with new volunteers? Welcome! We are glad you are here. Reach out. There are volunteers that will teach you. You will find areas where you feel you are making a difference!

Calendar of Events

SAVE THE DATE! ~ Prescott Rodeo Parade

• January 3rd: Open Arena

• January 10th: Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon

• January 24th: Open Arena

• February 14th: Bowl-A-Thon

• February 20th and 2st: Returning Volunteer Orientations

• February 2st: Returning Volunteer Safety Support Team Training

• February 27th and 28th: New Volunteer Orientations

• February 28th: New Volunteer Safety Support Team Training

• February 28th: Horse Handler Training

• March 5th: Mounting/Dismounting Practice

• March 7th: Competition Team returns

• March 11th: Grooming Horse Handler Training

• March 16th: Session 1 begins