Editor’s Note: The Magical Meadows rockathon ultimately raised over $101,000 for the Growing with Heart campaign.

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By Lilli Dwyer
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — At around 2 p.m. today, Thursday, Aug. 7, donations toward The Magical Meadows’ Growing with Heart campaign reached $50,000 — but the participants are in their rocking chairs until midnight, or until they meet the $100,000 goal.

The Magical Meadows is a nonprofit that provides therapeutic horseback riding for disabled kids and adults, veterans, first responders and at-risk youth. Starting at noon, 10 participants from Magical Meadows’ staff and volunteers, as well as some local first responders, took on a rockathon challenge.

Their task is to keep on rocking steady in their chairs for 12 hours straight, or until they each raise $10,000. The collective goal is to raise $100,000 between all 10 participants. Young riders Saphira, James, Elizabeth and Kim took the opportunity to spray them with silly string in order to encourage donations to get them out of their chairs.

On the first responders side are Kosciusko County Sheriff Jim Smith, Kosciusko County Prosecutor Brad Voelz, Turkey Creek Fire Territory Chief Mickey Scott, Warsaw Police Department Capt. Paul Heaton and Lutheran EMS/Pierceton Fire Department/military veteran Carla Quintero.

On the Magical Meadows side are executive director Michael Kuhn, founder Tammy Stackhouse, chairman of the board Carl Adams, board member/volunteer Keith Reinholt and volunteer Melissa Lewis.

Funds raised through the Growing with Heart campaign will go to building two new arenas, one dedicated to Warriors Mount Up, The Magical Meadows’ program for veterans and first responders.

The other will be an additional arena to expand Magical Meadows’ offerings for its disabled riders, including an observation room for families and caregivers.

Quintero, a first responder, United States Army veteran and mother of one of the young riders, is intimately familiar with The Magical Meadows and its cause.

“My daughter wanted to get into horseback riding and we are also a gold star family. My daughter lost her dad in the military,” Quintero said. “… It’s probably the best therapy, I would say, for children that have anxiety issues …”

After seeing the benefits of horseback riding for her current husband, a Marine Corps veteran, she became even more interested.

“I wanted to bring in other veterans that I knew in the county. … It’s vitally important to make sure that we’re taking care of our first responders’ mental health, and our veterans,” she went on.

“There’s things that first responders see that probably no human should ever see,” said Scott. “If we can help them get past that, that’s what we want to do.”

A new arena, Stackhouse said, will allow Warriors Mount Up to expand as there is currently only space and time to run the program once a week.

“PTSD doesn’t only happen once a week,” she pointed out. “Horses are very compassionate and nonjudgemental. Through that connection, they can find some inner peace.”

There are now about 150 weekly riders. Stackhouse predicts that ridership will double in the first year after the expansion is complete, and quadruple within 3-5 years. The ultimate goal for the project is $2.7 million.

The fundraiser continues until midnight tonight. Each participant’s fundraising page can be found at themagicalmeadows.org/rockathon/. The public is also welcome to drop off their donations in person at The Magical Meadows, 3386 E. 525N, Warsaw.