On July 18, 2008 the Wyoming Community Foundation (WYCF) granted Reaching Hands Ranch (RHR) $5,000 from the Flying V Donor Advised Fund. RHR was pleased to submit their final report to the WYCF October 8, 2009. In their report, RHR reported the funds were used to sustain operations, leverage additional funding, and used to market the program through newspaper advertisements.

Reaching Hands Ranch is an organization located in Powell which provides a rescue for horses that are either unwanted, have special needs or have been abused and neglected. Coupled with this, RHR provides at-risk youth from local communities with a hands-on mentoring experience using the horses, at no cost. They provide youth with needs a place to spend their free time in a positive manner. In the process horses’ lives are saved and youth learn lessons in responsibility, respect, empathy, citizenship, trust and improved self-esteem. RHR is a rapidly growing program due to the high request volume from the surrounding communities.

According to Jennifer Cramer, Program Director and Treasurer for RHR, “During the grant period, we were able to serve 56 at-risk youth through the Ranch Hand Program. Youth, parent and counselor evaluations revealed that 96% of youth exhibited an increase in self-esteem and social skills and 92% demonstrated good character traits upon involvement in the Program”

“Additionally, we offered 4 graduated ranch hands the opportunity to join a local 4-H club and take Reaching Hands horses as their projects. We transported them to meetings, riding activities and of course, the County Fair. The children who were chosen truly had a need for extra character building and a positive experience. Each one of them worked very hard and improved their skills tremendously. Their hard work paid off, not only in ribbons and awards, but with an amazing sense of accomplishment.”

The WYCF awarded the grant as part of its competitive grant cycle and the funds came from the Flying V Donor Advised Fund, which was established by an anonymous donor in 2001. The Flying V Fund has made over 60 grants since its inception, and made 18 grants totaling $194,650.00 in 2008, of which RHR was a recipient.

The Wyoming Community Foundation is a statewide nonprofit organization with total assets in excess of $50.5 million. To date in 2009, the Community Foundation awarded more than $1.1 million in grants to nonprofit organizations across Wyoming. The mission of the Wyoming Community Foundation is to connect people who care with causes that matter to build a better Wyoming.

For more information about Reaching Hands Ranch, contact Jennifer Cramer at reachinghandsranch@hotmail.com or by calling 307-272-9437.

For more information about the Wyoming Community Foundation call 307-721-8300 or go to: www.wycf.org

Written by Rose J. Muller, WYCF Communications Officer and Office Manager.