Over thirty of our dedicated volunteers turned out for our first volunteer training of the season on Thursday, February 1st. We started out with a beautiful sunny day, but a few hours in that changed to a major rainstorm. They were not to be deterred! Rebecca, our Volunteer Coordinator, kept them moving smoothly through the scheduled workshops, covering such topics as Helmets and Experiential Activities, Mounts and Dismounts, Diagnoses, Horse Language, Holds, and Tack and Equipment. Our instructors, Haley, Laura F, Laura N, Annie, Heather and Jen presented a plethora of interesting information, providing hands-on opportunities with the horses and an immersion into the world of fine motor skill challenges that many of our participants struggle with!

We were so excited to see so many smiling faces. Xenophon requires a refresher training each year, and our volunteers always turn out in willing droves. The training serves as a reminder about safety protocols while also imparting new information. Many of volunteers have been coming to these trainings for years. Our volunteer, Diane, who has been with us for over 12 years said of today’s training, “This is the best one I have ever been to. It was a different universe. There was new information and the expertise of the instructors was amazing.” Annette, who has volunteered for Xenophon for over 10 years said that she always picks up 1-2 nuggets of information that she did not know.

We love imparting knowledge and empowering our volunteers to be the best at their jobs. For those who were unable to join today, we hope we see you out here on Saturday!

“Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.” – Robert Noyce