Davis Stuart has been awarded a grant from the Mission Division of First Presbyterian Church, South Charleston. The grant awards $5,000 to Davis Stuart’s Equine Assisted Therapy program.

Equine Assisted Therapy uses the horse as a mirror or metaphor for how an individual relates to others. Children at Davis Stuart who participate in the Equine Assisted Therapy program learn to evaluate their own behavior and to try new ways of being and doing in order to be successful. Through activities with the horse, individuals will learn life skills that will help them to become more successful in their relationships, and therefore, life itself.

Currently, Davis Stuart is equipped with a horse barn, eight standard horses, and four miniature horses. Davis Stuart does not receive funding through West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) for this program. Therefore, they must rely solely on the benevolence of investors to keep the Equine Assisted Therapy program thriving. Davis Stuart operates as a private, non-profit organization, with the main campus located in Lewisburg, and serves teens and families across the mountain state.

First Presbyterian Church, South Charleston, has been a long standing supporter of the work being done at Davis Stuart. If you would like more information, or find ways you can help, visit www.davis-stuart.org, or contact Amanda Scott at 304-647-5577, or scotta@davis-stuart.org.

Be sure to check out Davis Stuart’s Equine Assisted Therapy Program at their second annual Horse Show on Saturday, May 13, at the WV State Fairgrounds.