Thank you!
We could not do all that we do to help our horses without the helping hands of our generous community. Special thanks to LIV Sotheby's for their recent volunteer efforts, and this article that ran in the Vail Daily recently, about why they volunteer.
LIV Sotheby’s International Realty brokers volunteer at Mountain Valley Horse Rescue
In recognition of programs that educate the Vail Valley community on mental health awareness, Vail Valley-area brokerage LIV Sotheby's International Realty recently participated in a day of giving at Mountain Valley Horse Rescue, a nonprofit organization committed to rescuing, rehabilitating and re-homing abused, neglected, abandoned and unwanted horses.
As one of the only horse rescue organizations on the Western Slope, MVHR relies on the support of the local community to make an everlasting difference for horses in need and those who benefit from horse therapy in Colorado.
"On behalf of LIV Sotheby's International Realty, it was an honor to volunteer at the MVHR, and we are grateful for the opportunity to give back to the local community we so dearly love," said April Holdredge, director of resort marketing at LIV Sotheby's International Realty. "We understand horse therapy is provided to veterans and others suffering from (post-traumatic stress disorder). As an Army veteran myself, I am thrilled to know this service is being offered through the efforts of MVHR."
More than a dozen brokers and staff from LIV Sotheby's International Realty's Vail brokerage team gathered at Mountain Valley Horse Rescue in McCoy to volunteer. Agents were put into two groups and then given a variety of tasks ranging from horse care and cleaning stalls to maintenance work on the ranch.
Many horses at MVHR are being rehabilitated from abusive or neglectful situations before either being placed in new permanent homes or kept on the MVHR ranch where they are used to help people with mental disorders, and veterans suffering from PTSD.
WHY HORSES?
Why horses? On a physical level, the gently rhythmic motion of riding a horse can be therapeutic for those suffering from physical limitations or immobility. Mentally, horseback riding and on-the-ground equine therapy are methods used to help veterans with PTSD by helping vets formulate goals. According to U.S. News, veterans might learn strategies they struggle with daily in remembering the chronological order of steps by practicing securing the bridle, harness and saddle on the horse.
"As one of Eagle County's first official equine therapy and therapeutic riding providers, I have a whole collection of methods and practices for releasing mental and physical suffering, implementing positive habits and team building — in both business and family situations and particularly with veterans and children — though horses," said Alecz Adams, equine therapy specialist at Soaring Spirit.
"It means so much that LIV Sotheby's International Realty came out to volunteer at the rescue center for this very important cause."
Today, there are an estimated 170,000 unwanted horses across the nation, with 6,000 in Colorado alone. Of these, 120,000 to 130,000 horses are shipped to slaughter in Mexico and Canada every year, where they are processed for human consumption. In addition, each year the Bureau of Land Management rounds up 9,400 wild horses off public lands, but only one in three find homes.
MVHR works to help reduce horse abuse and neglect through education and outreach and, when possible, networks to return rehabilitated horses to new, private homes.
Vail Valley brokers within LIV Sotheby's International Realty are largely involved in the community and actively support philanthropic efforts via the #LIVtoGive campaign. For more information, contact Dan Fitchett, managing broker at LIV Sotheby's International Realty, Vail, Edwards, Beaver Creek, at 970-471-1208.
Brittanny Havard is public relations manager for LIV Sotheby's International Realty. LIV Sotheby's International Realty compiles monthly, quarterly and year-end reports to help consumers make better real estate decisions, whether purchasing or selling a home.
To access current market reports, visit http://www.coloradomarketreports.com. For more information about LIV Sotheby's International Realty, visit http://www.livsothebysrealty.com.