On September 20, Monmouth Park Charity Fund, Winners Circle Society officially awarded their annual transformational grant. The amount of $21,500 was awarded to Riding High Farm, Handicapped High Riders Club, during the Awards Reception at the Monmouth Park Charity Golf Invitational, held at Suneagles Golf Course, in Eatontown, NJ. Riding High Farm incorporated as Handicapped High Riders Club, Inc., is a 10.5 acre farm, indoor riding facility and stable. This facility was organized in 1979 as a not-for-profit 501c(3) corporation, dedicated to providing special needs riders with recreational and therapeutic instruction.
Riding High Farm is located at 145 Route 526 in Allentown, New Jersey on the border of Eastern Mercer and Western Monmouth Counties. The transformational grant awarded will fund required facility and equipment upgrades to assure that the arena is safe for all riders. This one-time facility upgrade will transform Riding High Farm’s ability to upgrade safety and service capacity for long-term impact for their riders who are disabled. Riding High Farm Handicapped High Riders Club’s mission is to maintain the highest standards of care, safety and instructional benefits for special needs riding, and the transformational grant is in line with that mission. Riding High Farm also extends programs to the community by providing individual therapeutic riding and group lessons to school districts that require physical education for special needs students. Inclusivity is key for social skills’ development, and the integration of the able-bodied with the special needs population in Riding High’s inclusive summer camp programs provides an opportunity for that development.
With twenty-three grant applicants, members of the Winners Circle Society took time to review all the proposals and determine their final top three to consider for the grant funding. Maureen Lloyd, Board President of Monmouth Park Charity Fund along with her husband John Lloyd, hosted a lovely outdoor reception at their home in Avon by the Sea, for the three finalists to meet the Winners Circle Society members and provide brief presentations of their organizations and their grant application. Maureen Lloyd commented, “On behalf of the Monmouth Park Charity Fund and Winners Circle Society, we were so impressed with all 23 grant applications. As hard as it was to narrow it down to three, choosing just one was even more difficult. All three were so inspiring. Congratulations to Riding High Farm Handicapped High Riders Club, this year’s Winner Circle Society transformational grant recipient. What an honor it is for our organization to be part of something so great.”
Special thanks was extended to OceanFirst Bank for giving $1,000 to each of the finalists; 180 Turning Lives Around and Interfaith Neighbors.
