SIRE, Houston’s Therapeutic Riding Centers

On the evening of Saturday May 10th, more than 500 Texas gentlemen and their ladies will crowd the Downtown Hyatt Regency to kick-up their heels for SIRE, Houston’s Therapeutic Equestrian Centers, at the 2008 Silver Star Shindig.

This annual black-tie gala celebrates SIRE’s 25th Anniversary of therapeutic horseback riding that benefits children and adults with disabilities.

The 2008 Silver Star Shindig honors: long-time volunteer, Peggy Wagner, with the SIRE Lifetime Humanitarian Award for her significant dedication to client advancement; Baker Concrete Construction, with the Community Investment Award for generous donations to construction projects in the development of the SIRE-Spring arena, and Paige Kinkade of Medcare Pediatric Group in Fort Bend County, with the Medical Award, in recognition of the extraordinary health care services provided to area disabled children.

The generous contributions of time and resources given by these amazing partners enable SIRE to grow and expand their therapeutic riding programs to serve more people with special abilities throughout the Greater Houston Area.

For example, Larke Dampeer was born with a zero Apgar score, which means she had no breathing nor did she have a heartbeat. Therapeutic riding at SIRE has had such a dramatic improvement on her life, that in less than two years, Miss Larke can walk independently, has more fluid movement in her upper body, and feeds herself. All of the physical improvements have allowed Larke to now be able to interact and play with other children her age. The ability to communicate with her SIRE horse, Jessie, is a great boost to her self-confidence and overall has brought Larke a greater level of joy and quality of life.

Another young client, Emily Hughes, has difficulty walking, but can independently ride her horse. Although, it takes great focus for her to quiet her muscle spasms, she can complete a trail course each year at the Top Hands Horse Show at the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo. While riding on the back of a horse, Emily can leave her limitations on the ground and experience freedom of movement and confidence of self.

Now beautiful young woman, Emily Lund, who has ridden with SIRE for six years, progressed from a very frightened child with three volunteers at her side to a confident, independent equestrienne. Emily will now be leaving SIRE to head off to college on a full scholarship that covers her studies through her Masters degree

SIRE, Houston’s Therapeutic Equestrian Centers, is preparing for the 15th annual Saddle Up for SIRE Ride-A-Thon trailride to be held Saturday, October 13 at 7il Trails in Cat Spring, Texas. This very important fundraiser helps support our programs of equine-assisted therapy for people with disabilities in the Greater Houston Area.

Horseback riders will enjoy a 12 or 6 mile unguided ride at 7IL Trails; just 50 miles west of Houston near the old German town of Cat Spring. Registration is $60 ($75 after October 9). Your registration includes the trailride, lunch provided by the award-winning BBQ cook-off team, The More or Less Cookers, and a special edition 2007 Ride-A-Thon t-shirt.

We’ll keep the “fun” in fundraising with prizes for top fundraisers. An exciting part of the Ride-A-Thon has always been the Team Competition. And you don’t have to ride a horse to win! Form a minimum 2-person team of riders or non-riders and compete for top fundraising prizes.

The top fundraising SIRE clients also get to ride our SIRE therapy horses on a specially designed trail and compete for prizes of their own!

Underwriter packages are available at $250, $500, $1000 and $5000 levels.
This trail ride celebrates 24 years of improving the lives of children and adults with disabilities and last year raised over $78,000 that went to support therapeutic horseback riding programs for 190 individuals who ride weekly at SIRE’s three locations – Hockley, TX; Spring, TX; and Fort Bend County @ Sienna Stables.

The mission of SIRE is to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities using horseback riding and related therapeutic activities, such as hippotherapy and carriage driving. SIRE offers programs for children and adults with physical and cognitive disabilities, sensory impairments, and psychosocial disorders.

For a registration brochure, information on becoming an underwriter or more details, call Harla at 713-263-1498 or visit www.sire-htec.org.

On the evening of Saturday, May 12th, more than 500 buckaroos in tuxedoes moseyed in to the Downtown Hyatt Regency ballroom to kick-up their heels for SIRE, Houston’s Therapeutic Equestrian Centers, at the 2007 Shining Stars Over Texas Shindig.

It’s not a barn dance anymore! At this annual black-tie dinner-dance and auction, Bob Allen, Sports Anchor, KTRK ABC TV 13, returned as emcee for the evening, and shared his personal story about how SIRE benefits children and adults with disabilities.

Guests sat down to a five-course dinner surrounded by glittering table decorations and a backdrop of twinkling white stars. As the auction progressed, patrons danced to music by ‘Sound Advice’ .

This year’s Shining Stars Over Texas Shindig honored two of SIRE’s brightest stars, Jackie and Bill McDonald, of Magnolia, Texas. The generous contributions of time and resources given by this amazing couple enable SIRE to grow and expand their therapeutic riding programs, serving more people with special abilities throughout the Greater Houston Area.

Thanks to the continued support of volunteers like the McDonalds, children and adults with cognitive, physical and emotional disabilities are receiving the life-changing benefits of equestrian therapy.

SIRE was established in 1983 to provide equine-assisted therapy for people with disabilities of all ages. Today, SIRE operates three premier accredited NARHA (North American Riding for the Handicapped Association) centers in and around Houston, and is recognized as one of the nation’s top therapeutic riding programs.

Each week, approximately 187 clients ride at SIRE Hockley, SIRE Spring, and SIRE Fort Bend @ Sienna Stables.

Hunting PLC announced today that it is donating $100,000 in proceeds from the Hunting Art Prize to SIRE, a Houston-based charity that uses therapeutic horseback riding and related activities to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities.

The contribution includes funds generated from an auction at the April 29 Art Prize gala, as well as a donation based on sales of the finalists’ work shown at the event.

“We are pleased and honored to be able to show our support for SIRE in this way,” said Dennis Proctor, Chief Executive of Hunting, whose U.S. corporate headquarters are located in Houston. “We believe strongly in what the organization does, and are glad for the opportunity to help them grow and gain greater recognition for all that they do.”

SIRE, which stands for Self Improvement through Riding Education, has served the Houston area since 1983. It is one of just 212 therapeutic riding centers to earn Premier Accreditation by the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association out of 700 centers nationally.

The Hunting Art Prize relocated to Houston in 2006 after 25 years in London, where it emerged as one of the United Kingdom’s most prestigious art competitions. Houston artist Francesca Fuchs won the $50,000 prize, which is one of the most generous in North America.

About Hunting PLC
Hunting PLC is an international oil services company providing support solutions to the world’s largest oil and gas concerns. Established in 1874, it is a fully listed public company, traded on the London Stock Exchange. For further information, visit www.hunting.plc.uk

May 12, 2007 - Hyatt Regency, Downtown Houston

SIRE, Houston’s Therapeutic Equestrian Centers’ Annual Fundraising Shindig is a Texas black-tie event that is recognizing SIRE’s volunteers from all over Harris, Montgomery and Fort Bend Counties. This year’s Shining Stars Over Texas Shindig honors two of SIRE’s brightest stars, Jackie and Bill McDonald, of Magnolia, Texas. For over a decade, The McDonalds have contributed their time, their resources and their hearts to support SIRE’s mission of equine-assisted therapy.

Jackie began as an arena volunteer and now serves on SIRE’s Board of Directors. She has been a committee member and co-chair of SIRE’s biggest fundraisers, the Ride-A-Thon and the Shindig. Some of the most successful Ride-A-Thons have been under Jackie’s leadership. Her involvement with the Shindig helped to create the sophisticated and successful black-tie gala that it is today.

Bill owns and operates D & L Electric Company, which completely re-wired SIRE’s facilities in Hockley and Spring, updating the electrical systems and adding bright, new arena lights. With the help of his award winning BBQ cook-off-team, ‘The More or Less Cookers’, Bill also donates and prepares lunch for the 350+ attendees at SIRE’s annual Ride-A-Thon.

The generous contributions of this amazing couple are part of the solid financial foundation that enables SIRE to grow and expand, serving the people with special abilities of the Greater Houston Area.

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Appropriately named, our Trailblazers Luncheon held on November 2, 2007 gained new ground in financial support for SIRE’s mission. The presentation at our fifth annual fund-raising luncheon began with a short, heart-touching video, produced by Bob Allen from TV Channel 13. A quiet settled into the room, and the only sounds that could be heard were an occasional emotional breath and hushed tears.

As testimony to the remarkable benefits achieved through equestrian therapy, four-year-old Larke Dampeer, a rider at SIRE Fort Bend @ Sienna Stables, was carried to the podium by her father, accompanied by her older brother. Her mother spoke about how Larke was born with a zero Apgar score, which means she had no breathing nor did she have a heartbeat. Therapeutic riding at SIRE has had such a dramatic improvement on her life, that in less than two years, Miss Larke can walk independently, has more fluid movement in her upper body, and has started to feed herself. All of the physical improvements have allowed Larke to now be able to interact and play with other children her age. The ability to communicate with her SIRE horse, Jessie, is a great boost to her self-confidence, and the SIRE program, overall, has brought Larke and her family a greater level of joy and quality of life.

Another young client, Emily Hughes, has difficulty walking, but can independently ride her horse; it takes great focus for her to quiet the spasms, but she can complete a trail course at the Top Hands Horse Show each year. Riding on the back of a horse, Emily can leave her limitations on the ground and experience freedom of movement and confidence of self.

Now a beautiful young woman, Emily Lund, who has ridden with SIRE for six years, progressed from a very frightened child with three volunteers to a confident, independent equestrienne. Emily will now be leaving SIRE to head off to college on a full scholarship that covers her studies through her Masters degree!

It is hard to imagine that we could touch so many people, so deeply in one hour that they would commit more than $100,000 to our mission. Truly remarkable, because SIRE receives no state or federal funding.

The money raised at SIRE’s Trailblazers Luncheon will help bring the lives of many disabled adults and children closer to physical, mental and emotional healing.