BY DAVE CHOATE

The UpReach Therapeutic Riding Center’s activities revolve around horses, but the therapy it aims to perform is about much more than that.

Volunteer Deborah Coon teaches a riding and a driving class for the center, both of which can have therapeutic benefits for the handicapped. She said the programs give those in need of therapy a chance to enjoy the outdoors and interact with animals.

“The most rewarding part of volunteering at UpReach is seeing the improvement the students make, even in as short a time as our regular six-week term. It always amazes me that the improvements are not just physical, which you would expect, but also in speech, communication, attitude and confidence,” Coon said.

Coon has been volunteering at UpReach for four years now, after seeing an ad in a small Hillsboro paper during her work. Traditionally a lover of animals, she said she has been inspired to take horseback riding up again and fulfill a lifelong dream of owning her own horse.

She said she had been raised to volunteer since her teenage years in Brookline.  Coon said she has spent time working for the YMCA, animal shelters and schools off and on since the 1970s, and that the pairing of her eagerness to work with animals and help out in the community has worked well for her in Goffstown.

“I love animals, especially horses, so it seemed like a perfect match. I could help people with disabilities improve their lives and work with horses at the same time, really a win-win situation,” Coon said.

UpReach has a roster of regular students who will either ride atop the horses or on a carriage pulled by the horse, depending on what students want and what their disabilities will allow them to do. The riding gives students a workout and experience working at giving commands and handling a much larger animal.

Coon said she has no plans to stop teaching at UpReach anytime soon. She said she feels volunteer work is one of the most valuable things a resident can do in their community.

“Volunteer work is essential to the well being of the community. There are gaps in town, state and federal funding that can only be filled by people willing to donate their time and energies. I also believe that, as we give of that time and energy, those of us who volunteer find our lives greatly improved, broadened and enriched,” she said.