Arrowhead Juvenile Center (07/23/10, Duluth, MN)

7/23/2010 Outreach Visit to Arrowhead Juvenile Center in Duluth, MN by Paula Moore

Magic’s star under her forelock got a lot of rubs today. Many of the young men and young women in the first group needed luck. 2 guys asked us to bring Magic back Mon. and Tues. They were taking a big test. They knew we could not but after thinking about it they decided touching her star 5 times each would make the luck last until Monday and Tuesday. In the second group another young man pleaded for us to bring Magic back Wednesday morning.” I need her luck bad. I have court.” His tone of voice and the matter of fact way he said it, made the staff, residents, and the education outreach team laugh. Even the young man himself laughed, realizing the truth and the gravity of the situation that just unexpectedly popped out of his mouth.

Our last visit to the Arrowhead Juvenile Center was 8/21/2009. It went just as well this year as it did last year. The first group of guys were already sitting and waiting for us. They looked past Carole, Polly, and me down the hall, craning their necks. The staff said they were looking for the horse. Magic was not with us. Boy were they disappointed and skeptical.

As Carole, Polly and I set up, we heard the guys start talking about how this was a big joke on them by the staff. “These people will just talk about rescuing horses but bring one into the building, yeah right”…”sure and like we are going to pet it too”…like it is going to come up in our face” …”very funny”…”I’m not buying it.”

I told them they were all wrong and that a horse was really coming. In fact I told them what a risk the staff was taking to bring a rescue horse in here for them to spend time with. “Will it bite me?” Will it kick me?”

We set up the projector equipment but had to wait for a group of 4 girls to join the group. Carole, Polly, and I talked with the young men. It was a steady conversation that kept Carole, Polly and I busy. They had a lot of questions about the horse coming in. One boy lived on a farm. He knew about horses. Another boy was a pet lover. He could not wait but had to be cool in front of the other guys. It was lively and interesting. Polly and I were used to these types of kids. You had to be honest and direct but have a sense of humor and understand where they were coming from, the vulnerability they feel at letting us in, and be nonjudgmental..see the good in them even when they do not see it in themselves.

Gramma Carole said the give and take Polly and I had with the guys went well and we developed that rapport. Things went very smooth.

When the girls came in there was a bit of posturing by both the boys and girls…some winking. However both groups listened well. The guys did not feel comfortable talking in front of the girls. 2 of the girls sat with very defensive body language…arms folded against their chests and sitting at an angle away from me. I was proud of the guys and the one girl who had the guts to share their answers to the questions I asked.

WindChill’s story was very hard on one young man. He had to leave. Most knew exactly what I was talking about. You could see that life had been just as hard for them as for WindChill. The staff appreciated the facts I told the kids about my life and how 3 people in different stages of my life and in different ways, made a difference in my life, helping me to understood why I acted the way I did. I was able to get help and change my life so it isn’t so hard right now to live each day.

I told them I understood that if they saw a person or animal in trouble calling 911 would be the last call they would make. They do not want any more contact with the law if they can help it. I did stress that they could tell someone else who could make the call. Again I stressed that all it took was 1 call to get the help I needed. The call did not come soon enough for WindChill. He did not survive. I did. There is hope.

Later Polly and Carole were talking about what a chance these boys are getting by being at the Arrowhead Juvenile Center but I know the kids do not see it. I know most are just doing their time until they go back to the same old neighborhood, same old friends. Polly and I have seen students in our classes that come back and the change is remarkable until 3 or 4 months later. They fall apart.

When Magic was brought in, one of the girls made a kicking motion with her leg. Polly stepped in right away, telling her that was inappropriate behavior. The girl said she was only kidding but Polly did not fall for that answer. Polly continued telling her that it was not funny. Polly held the girl accountable.

When Magic came in, there was a big laugh and a few ‘cutes.’ The 4 girls were the first to pet Magic and she melted their hearts. Magic did the whole round of kids. There was a lot of talking…all relating to Magic.

The second time around, people were more relaxed. The girls finally made that connection with Magic. They came around to thinking Magic was ok. The girls began braiding Magic’s mane. They put her forelock into a bouffant type of do and Magic looked so cool. It really complimented her face and her eyes. She looked sophisticated. They did a few braids but had to leave early so they told the guys to finish the braiding. The guys did. As the girls left, out of the blue they said thank you to Kathi. What a BIG change Magic had made.

Some of the guys had hair bands and used them to hold the braids. When the girls left, the boys became more themselves. There were lots of appropriate questions and laughs. The guys were fun. They joked but it was respectful. They really wanted to know about Magic and handled her very gently. They scratched her and scratched her. They could tell Magic was enjoying this as much as them.

They all confessed they had hoped to see Magic make a mess. It would have made their day. However minds definitely changed when they were told by the staff that they would be doing the cleanup.

Polly and Carole said that Magic brought these kids’ hearts out on their faces. You could see the joy on their faces. As soon as the girls left the boys were more demonstrative. Some got down on her level to scratch her. After some of the boys left, two boys who you could tell wanted to hug her so bad, did…not just one or 2 but 3 or 4 clingy long hugs.

We packed up and moved to the treatment center. This group of guys was great from the start. They moved tables for us. They read our t-shirts. They asked what we did. We told them we worked with rescue horses. As WindChill’s picture got up on the screen, one young man asked jokingly if that horse was coming into the center. I said, “No but another rescue horse is coming in.” TOTAL SILENCE! “What did you just say?” I said another rescue horse is coming for you to pet. ‘Why not this one?” “He died and I am here to tell you his story.” Questions flowed.

I started my presentation and after each slide there was a thoughtful question from the young men. There was a lot of empathy in the room. Gramma Carole, Polly, and I all saw it on their faces. They knew how much WindChill had suffered.

When it was time to answer some questions I posed to them here are the answers:

What should be the punishment for people who neglect and abuse animals? “Shoot them.” I told the young man that would not be wise because you would only hurt yourself more…”you are in Juvee now but being in a State Penitentiary is a much harder life. “ “No Food” and “Life.” “Jail forever.” One young man cried out “I am not going to jail for no animal…it is just an animal.” “Prison.” “Show them how it feels to be hungry.”

Answer to why were WindChill’s basic needs not met? “Didn’t care about the horse.””Laziness.” Answers to why do people abuse and neglect horses? “Something wrong with them.” “Raised that way.” “Have problems.”“It’s funny to them.” “Owner sick and weak.” “Laziness.” “To feel sense of power and control over animals.”

When Magic came in to this group, they were very gentle with her and interested in her. They liked the braids. One young man was scared of her. He had given such good answers to my questions but did not want to be near her. Magic got a lot of scratch time with each person. They were very demonstrative with Magic. In fact when it was time to leave we had to pull Magic out of the room. There was a lot of empathy. We were thanked a lot for coming to visit them.

As we were leaving one of the boys in the first group, all dressed in green, walked out with us and an adult. The boy was very mannerly and respectful. He said it was great petting this horse. He confessed that he was scared Magic would mistake his green tenners and laces for grass and start eating on them. Magic didn’t. We all had a good laugh. He told the adult with him that this program made his day.

It was so funny leaving the building. We did not take turns. We left like usual, all together. We forgot that this was a secure facility, forgetting you can’t open another door until the one behind you is closed. Here all of us are in the tiny entry way… 1 young man and an adult person, me, Polly, Carole, Kathi and a 225 pound mini horse. One is pulling on the last door to the outside but it will not open because there is a mini butt in the way and me still trying to get the inside door to shut. No one could figure it out… why the door to the outside would not buzz open…until a staff member came over the intercom and told us what we had to do. We had to squeeze all together in this very small area…6 people and a 225 pound Magic to get the inside door closed. We did it and the outside door buzzed..DAYLIGHT!!!!We saw 4 staff members laughing so hard behind the glass plated windows at our ineptness and all of us smooched together. They don’t see that very often. Of course Magic handled it very matter-of-fact. What a rock!

When we finally got outside Kathi told us that when she first arrived and was walking Magic to the door, there were two huge guys out in the yard. They just stared at her and Magic. Kathi stared right back and said,” DON’T YOU KNOW THIS IS WHERE THE BAD PONIES GO…”

Franciscan Health Center (07/20/10, Duluth, MN)

7/20/10 Outreach Visit to Franciscan Health Center in Duluth MN by Paula Moore

“She is fertilizing right now,” was the term used by a resident describing Magic’s 5 minute break in her trailer…

The residents had a lot more to say about Magic:

· “Oh I thought you were bringing in a puppy…that‘s a horse”

· “She’s every little girl’s dream.”

· “She’s so well behaved…I wish my daughters were like that.” (Resident looking at the daughter who was pushing her wheelchair.)

· “This is the highlight of my week.”

· “She really is Magic.”

· “I’m terrified of big horses.”

· “Do we get to keep her???”

· “Nice looking hooves.”

· “Do you want to come in bed with me?”

· “She’ too cute?”

· “Does she bite?”

· “You’re quite the little critter…Get a picture of me with this critter.

· “I didn’t know they made horses this small.”

· What the hell…a horse?”

· “She needs a shave. No lady should have hairs this long.”

· “I will give you the name of my hairdresser.”

· “She is a darling. She winks at you—and blinks her 2 eyes.”

· “Take Magic home with you.”(Resident said to his daughter)

It was another fun time at The Franciscan Health Center. We were there a year ago on 4/17/2009 with Jeff and Magic. Most of the staff and some residents remembered Magic. A physical therapist came on her day off just to see Magic again. “You are just as beautiful as ever.” she said. She hugged Magic for about 5 minutes, took pictures with her cell phone, and then started bringing her patients out of their rooms to see Magic. She did not want them to miss seeing Magic.

From last year we learned not to have the residents arranged in a circle. Most are in wheelchairs. The space was so tight and Magic could not get as close as needed to be petted. I had asked the activity director to just let Magic walk the halls and greet everyone and go in the rooms along the way. A great plan…except for the excitement in the air!!!!

I walked in to announce that we were here. Magic got through the entry way but just as she entered the hall by the office, wheelchairs came out of nowhere. Some were by the residents but others were by the staff. Magic was stuck in this hallway surrounded by wheel chairs and lots of staff with cell phones taking pictures of them with Magic, and staff going back and forth to get residents out of rooms.

They had a 7^th grade volunteer guarding Magic’s butt from getting rear-ended and she did a good job. She had horses of her own. Magic had the trust of the staffers who had to get through. We were stalled by the medicine cart and they thought nothing of walking past her rump.

It was hard to say move back when you hear, “I am so excited.” “She’s finally here.” “I don’t want to miss her.” One example was a woman who could not make it up to Magic because her walker could not make it through the congestion. A staff member brought her a chair to sit on a few feet down the hall. We her promised Magic would come to her. Every time I looked up, her chair was a few inches closer. I do not know how but her chair somehow made it around the medicine cart right by Magic. We laughed so hard when she took Magic’s halter in both her hands, bent over with her face on Magic’s nose, looking eye to eye with Magic and said, “You finally came to me.” NO WAY…It was really the other way around. She was determined to make her way to Magic inch by inch.

The activity director ran through the battery of 2 cameras and a film camera taking pictures of each resident with Magic. Last year after our visit, the activity director made a big collage on the wall of all the resident pictures with Magic. Then with the rest of the pictures she made a scrap book. It was very well done. Kathi really liked it.

So many of the residents wanted to make sure they got a picture with Magic. The activity director said that collage she made got so much use and she planned to do the same this year.

The staff was incredible. They were so bubbly. It is a lively place. This was the first time Carole was the handler for Magic in a nursing home. She says it is way different than doing schools. You could tell Carole loved it. She was beaming the whole time.

Some people in their rooms were not ready for us but they said please come back. We did. Visitors asked that we come see their parent when they were ready and so I wrote down room numbers. We made it back to them.

When you walk into the entry way there are big trees and flowers and ferns…all fake. Of course Magic tried to grab some foliage or as one of the staff members said ROUGHAGE as she came in. She did not succeed. Kathi was quick.

However as we were leaving, Magic did succeed. Carole was not so quick and just never thought well behaved tired Magic would do this. NOW Carole knows that Magic had been making her diabolical plan the whole 2 ½ hours she was working. Magic proved she can multi-task. She did grab a long fern. She pulled it all the way out. She was caught red handed with this long fake fern leaf hanging out of her mouth. She looked so cute and GUILTY. Carole pulled it out of her mouth. As the activity director saw this all unfolding Kathi covered up for Magic by pointing at the sign in the garden and saying ”IT DOESN’T SAY DON’T EAT THEM. “And then Carole chimed in with “IT JUST SAYS DON’T PICK THEM.” We all laughed so hard.

WE ARE INVITED BACK. In fact we are going back in Sept. I bet there will be a new sign: DO NOT PICK OR EAT THE FLOWERS. Kathi asked them if we could bring Jazz for a try out. The activity director agreed. Jazz is untested house broken wise and they have all bare floors and exits are close just in case.

The janitor was teased so much. He was such a good sport. The place was so clean. As we were going down the hall, a man wanted to pet Magic, but he had a glass of water in his hand for taking his pill. He took the pill and then went to pet Magic, the water spilled all over him and the floor. Magic did not even flinch. The man sure did. Kathi saw the janitor was around the corner cleaning a room. Kathi yells “Clean-up.” He comes with a mop and a determined face. Kathi is smiling…”only water. The man spilt it from a cup. It wasn’t Magic” It was a good laugh and the janitor broke out in a big smile. The resident blamed it on Magic.

The rooms were nice and big. There was lots of equipment with noises but they did not seem to bother Magic at all. She has really gotten comfortable. She has a system now where she rests her nose on the edge of a wheelchair or her nose rests lightly on a knee all very gentle. No one complains. She also knows how to place her head just right on a bed with very little effort. She uses very little physical energy but emotionally she takes in so much and you can see her get tired at the end of a visit.

When Kathi brought her out of the trailer for the first time, Kathi said Magic must have rolled in the trailer. She was full of shavings. No worries though. The residents loved picking the shavings out of her forelock and mane. One woman was doing a great job of it and her daughter reminded her mom that she did this to her all the time when she was young. (picking out hay)

A resident in her room told us, “The one who visited me at home wanted carrots.” Out came a bag of carrots which we fed to Magic after the outreach was done.

Carole was really proud of a resident who would not pet Magic the first time but did when we met her again in the hall. She did it with a smile and proudly said, “It is the first time I petted a horse.”

There were some pesky flies that followed Magic around. The staff said that the when the automatic door open, sand flies come in. Magic kept itching her back leg a lot. It looked so funny to see her little thin back legs crossed.

The floor was a bit slippery too. Magic did slide several times but always kept her composure. We even have a very funny picture of her using her hind leg to scratch all the way up to her ear. It was not lady like and her mane was a mess.

There were a lot of residents who were hard of hearing. You had to really shout and repeat things. With one woman we were trying to get her to move a bit so Magic could get up close to her. She kept repeating “I don’t understand… I don’t understand… I don’t understand… I don’t understand…” Staff checked her hearing aide. It was turned off. It was then turned on. Carole bought Magic up close to the woman. She got a big smile on her face. ”Oh now I understand.”Carole and I talked to her. She kept saying, “She wants something to eat.” “She wants something to eat.” Every walker and wheelchair had a basket on it filled with food.

Carole hit the nail on the head when she made this observation: Magic could bring a Halloween trick or treat bag and it would get filled up pretty quickly here. I was given crackers, carrots, and candy for Magic. We had to explain that Magic was working now but later she would get a snack on the way home.

One guy who loved Magic and was cracking jokes while petting her, gave me crackers to give to her later. He went back to his room but then followed us down the hall. We talked about tomatoes and gardening. He asked if we were going to breed Magic. I said no. He replied, “Well she is so small and she might have a hard time of it. She is a good old gal.” The last thing he told me was “Cut her hair and sell it. She has too much of it. Make a rug and sell it. Or you could make fur liners. You would get a lot for it. Get it on Ebay.”

One woman kept her hand underneath Magic’s nose for the longest time. She smiled every time Magic blew hot air on her. A man next to her waiting his turn became impatient to meet Magic. He yelled to the staff, “I want her to quit horsing around.”

Some of the residents’ rooms had portable air conditioners. Magic and all of us lingered a while in those rooms. When we left we always got a “Shut the door.”

One of these residents with an air conditioner, when ask if he wanted a horse to come in to visit him replied with a very loud robust, “What the hell is going on? “ But the minute he saw Magic, his voice was a soft, “Hello Buddy.” We talked awhile. He told us about how he and a friend would go horse backing riding on a trail up north. They had to bring pistols every time because of timber wolves. When we left he was outside having a cigarette. Trish had to walk one of her dogs and so they continued to talk.

One bedridden patient saw Magic and his face broke into a smile so wide. He said to Magic, “Come up on my lap.” And he made the motion with his hands on his lap. The activity director said, “You know that is a horse right.” He said yeh and smiled and then put out both his hands and said to Magic, “Come ‘mere baby.”

One staff guy wanted to know about Magic. He heard us talking about how Magic was a rescue. He wondered how she could be so nice and even tempered. He said it is amazing how she can forgive…”She sure could teach people a lesson about forgiveness.”

Staff asked one man lying in bed if he wanted to keep Magic in his room. He said, “Oh Yes.” “Where would you keep her?” He said “Kick the patient out next door. He is too loud anyways and Magic is quiet.” “What about the poop?” He replied, “My 2 daughters will do the pooper scooping.”

Several staff complimented their residents as having the “Magical touch with Magic.” Magic stayed put and crooked her leg for the longest time. She was so relaxed and felt safe. One man got Magic’s itchy spot. “I know it is right here by her ear. You are something else you know that.” He kept saying to Magic.

As we walked down the back halls going into rooms of people who were bedridden, people who had pet Magic in the front hall way were lined up to repet Magic again. It was so heartwarming to see how much they enjoyed the experience. That is one of the many reasons we are coming back so soon.

A staff member said her Great Dane is bigger than Magic.

Many residents wanted pictures of them with Magic to show their family a horse was in the building. One man asked to see the picture taken by the digital camera. He looked. “Is that a picture of me? Well the horse looks better.”

Again Magic stayed longer with a woman who was bed ridden and never leaves her room. She was lying on her side dressed nicely looking out the window. She rolled over and sighed. Magic was waiting for her. She pet Magic. The staff asked her if they should get a mini horse for the building. She said, “Yes and he can stay in my room.” When we left she gave Magic one last pet and looked directly in Magic’s eye and said, “I BELIEVE YOU ARE MAGIC.” Both Gramma Carole and I notice her chin quivering when she said this.

One woman bossily told Magic, “Come on kiss me.” She told me a story of how her husband was so lovey dovey one day and told her he was bringing something home to keep her company. She thought it had to be a cat. It was a chicken.

As we were leaving staff told us how nice to see all the smiles and hear residents making conversations. As we were leaving one resident shouted, “See you tomorrow …maybe.” One staff member said to another “And a dog will never be as exciting again around here.”

After the outreach Kathi suggested Magic cool off in Lake Superior. The Franciscan Health Center is located on a sand bar about 4-5 miles long which is called Park Point. You get to Park Point by crossing a bridge that lifts up to let in big ocean and laker ships. The Franciscan Health Center is on the lake side but across the road is the Bay of Lake Superior. Kathi had scoped out the bay part during a Magic potty break and found a wooden pier going way out on the lake. Kathi and Magic went a long ways out on the pier surrounded by deep cold freezing blue Lake Superior water. Magic had complete trust in Kathi. Magic showed no hesitation. Trish Poylio got some great photos of the two of them.

Then Kathi noticed another pier but it was a grassy one jutting out in Lake Superior. She and Magic walked out on that too as far as it went until it hit the rocks. There was a family of geese swimming by. Magic ate grass. It was another amazing scene…a little mini horse way out there with the vast lake and the high bridge and boats in the background. We have great pictures of that too.

There was a little sandy beach there too. Of course Kathi had to see if Magic could swim…well walk in the water. I quickly took my shoes and socks off and Magic and I went wading in the water. It did not take much of a pull to get her in. She did not fuss. She drank. She slurped. She walked with me. She kicked the water around. Kathi told me, “Go deeper but make sure she is on the shore side and you are in the deeper part.” Kathi is so protective of Magic. Trish said I had to be in the deep end. It was all for the cause. After about 10 minutes it was time to get going. We drove 3 miles to go across the lift bridge to Duluth only to find we got BRIDGED. A laker was coming in and the bridge was up. We had to wait 20 minutes to cross over into the city of Duluth.

St. Eligius Health Center (Superior, WI, 06/23/10)

Wednesday 6/23/2010 Outreach Visit to St. Eligius Health Center in Duluth Superior

“WHAT ROOM WILL SHE BEING STAYING IN?” asked the security guard. Magic captured the heart of this security guard and every single resident, staff member, and volunteer.

What an appreciative staff. What appreciative volunteers. What appreciative residents. Even the janitorial people were appreciative. We had a blast at St. Eligius. What a great place to visit.

Before we got into the building we were met energetically by the janitorial staff who told us horse jokes. They were very accommodating and told us they had no worries about cleaning up after Magic. They assured us they had cleaned up much worse.

The community room had a very tight circle of residents in wheel chairs and more kept coming off the elevator…at least 50. Behind them were staff, volunteers, and relatives making it at least 75 people.

Carole, Trish , and I talked to the residents for a good half hour before Magic came in. We each took a section of people. We answered questions about Magic, complimented residents on jewelry, or wearing shirts with animals on them.

One resident had shown horses. She had so much knowledge. I hooked her up with Kathi so they could talk. Later on when I mentioned to people about how Magic’s whiskers tickled, the woman yelled several times, “Those are not whiskers those are hairs!” Kathi had a good laugh.

One resident whose name was Judy also had a horse named Judy. She was called Little Judy and the horse was called Big Judy.

One youth volunteer went riding at a friend’s house. It was a ‘bigger ‘pony than Magic…It reared while he was on it and that was the last time he will ever get on a horse.

One great story we heard was about a great grandfather. He had a stable of riding horses in Proctor. He would cut lumber here, make it into fence posts. Then drive all the way to Glendive, Montana trading fence posts for horses. He even made money on the deal.

One staff member said her father rescued 2 horses form the circus, Rusty and Silver. One was blind.

It always thrills me to hear that sound when Magic walks into the room and see the smiles that come on people’s faces. This was no different except that people had a hard time waiting for Magic to come around.

Beverly, who saw us at the West Duluth Women’s Club and arranged for us to go to the MS Support Group, was the one who also told the activity director at St. Eligius about us. She was there too. She has seen Magic 2x and still cannot get enough of her. She is in a wheel chair and drives her own car. It is an effort for her to come to these. She is such a fan of Magic and our program. She has even set up a seminar in Sept. for another group. Beverly told us that our program was the ABSOLUTE best program the MS Support Group ever had… for many reasons. She said the topic at every meeting still is Magic. It has been months since we did it but we sure made an impact she said.

Again our WindChill t-shirts were very noticeable. They noticed our WindChill buttons.I told them a little about WindChill. Some of the people asked if Magic.

In the community room the residents were so expressive at how Magic made them feel. We heard many times, “She’s so beautiful.” “Magic made my day.” “She is really something.”

One resident said, “That is a pretty big dog.” Another said, “She doesn’t weigh enough. Put some meat on her.”

One woman said, “I never petted a horse before. They were so big on the farm.” Another woman said, “A horse– isn’t she afraid of us?”

One little girl yelled PUPPY when she saw Magic. Everyone laughed. She kept telling her Grandma, Mom, Grandpa and Great Grandma to PET her. I took the little girl by the hand to pet Magic. The first thing she did was put her hands on Magic’s back and lay her head down on Magic’s back and just sigh. She stayed that way for about 20 seconds (70 aahs in the background) and then stroked Magic all over. We gave her a few minutes and then had to move on to others. The girl did not understand that. She wanted more time. Her mom told her she had to share the horse with the other people and we would come around again which we did.

One man said Magic was too small to ride but good for walking.

One resident moved Magic’s hair out of the way. “I just want to see your eyes.”

One woman said the first time she went near a horse it bit her in the boob. “This is a much nicer experience.” she said.

One resident refused to pet Magic. She said she was raised to have animals outside and not inside.

Many of the staff asked us for WindChill Legacy brochures. At other places it is usually us doing the asking. They had 20 youth volunteers that day. I had brought WOW brochures, magnets, pencils, and pens for them.

We went around the circle twice. People could not get enough of Magic. A special needs man, that Carole had see often at her workplace coming with his parents, wanted his picture taken with Magic and wanted a copy. Of course there were confidentiality rules in place and we could not. However the next day I did go back and left a framed picture of Magic for him with the words, “I was very excited to meet you Michael.

As we left we heard many voices say, “Bring her back.” It was hard to leave.

After the community room, Magic went out for a break. We still had rooms to visit. As we were leaving the community room, the activity director stopped us to show us a lady. She had come down to see Magic. The activity director told us that they could not get this lady out of bed for a couple of days and were really surprised she was here. They could not get a lot of reaction from her these days and here they were seeing so much interaction. The staff asked the woman if she wanted to get up and go for a ride on Magic. The woman laughed but asked if Magic could stay with her in her room. Kathi told the woman, “Tie Magic to your wheel chair and when you see a break go for it and hide her in your room. It will take a day before anyone will notice.” Kathi always brings such joy and laughter with these BOLD quips of hers.

Magic walked down the long hallway out to the trailer. We told the janitorial staff that we were taking Magic out for a 10 minute break to do her business. One replied, “Oh we like that.”

After her break, Magic went in the front door right up to the raffle table to look around. She had to examine everything. She actually put her head on the table and sniffed. They had 6 great prizes. There was a basket with the folded up raffle tickets and Magic put her nose in there. Kathi said any basket is a curiosity for her. We explained how we really have a horse pick out our raffle winners at our BBQ. Magic cleared out all the office personnel and just thrilled the lady selling tickets. There was a lot of laughing going on. Magic’s personality just gets everyone involved, smiling, and laughing. They could not believe how curious she is and what a gentle touch she has. Nothing tipped over. (Again Kathi is incredible at trusting Magic with these new experiences. What a life Magic leads, being given the freedom to exercise her curiosity.)

As we were walking down the hall 2 visitors were hurrying to leave. The woman walked past Magic but the guy couldn’t resist raking his hands across Magic’s butt as he passed by her.

One resident in bed said she wanted to take Magic to bed with her and hide her under the blanket.

The staff was asking people, “Is it all right if I bring a horse in to see you? One woman’s reply….”Is it for real?”

One staff member was wheeling a man down the hall. She said to him, “Are you seeing horses today Robert ? It might be your meds.”

“Never had a horse in my room before. Thank you I sure enjoyed this”….”Oh my goodness isn’t she precious.”

In the hall I heard a staff member walking by with another staffer. She was telling her about “the great bowel and urinary stamina that the horse has.”

In several rooms there was an oxygen dispersal unit. That used to bother Magic but not anymore.

We walked into another room where a woman was crying. The activity director told us she had had a very rough night. The woman was bending over in a wheel chair with her head in her hands crying. She did not even look up when we came in. The nurse said her name and told her to look. When she did, there was the cutest horse face staring at her. She reacted immediately with, “OH OH she came to see me??????” She put one finger on Magic’s nose and then both hands around Magic’s face. She cried and cried but also started talking to Magic. As she cried and talked to Magic, she started to pet her. She kept thanking us for bringing Magic. She asked if she could hug Magic. Kathi maneuvered Magic so her head was in the ladies arms. It was just raw emotion coming from this woman. The team, Trish, Betty W., Carole, and I all had tears running down our faces.

After that the activity director said we had to move on. She had patients on 2^nd floor for Magic to see. Kathi told the activity director we were not moving. “This is why we are here today for this woman.” Kathi sat on the floor. We all sat wherever we could and stayed with this woman. The activity director repeated her request but Kathi said, “No we will stay here until the time comes we can leave. “ So we stayed for 30 minutes in her room.

During that 30 minutes, we heard the woman talking it all out with Magic, telling her about her rough night through the sobs, asking for more Kleenex, scratching Magic, petting her. Trish, Betty W., Carole, and I kept tearing up. The woman was crying her heart out to this horse. We felt so bad for her. The sadness was sooooooooo deep.

Magic was a rock. The woman could do anything to her….touch her nose, pull on her halter, pull on her hair, pat her, and hold her ears. Magic understood. She crooked her leg, relaxed and did not move for the 30 minutes (Kathi explained to Magic that that was her job.)

The activity director realizing that were staying with this woman, left us and did other things. She did come back 30 minutes later and told us that staff and clients in Rehab were very excited to see Magic. Could we stop by there…..We did leave but Kathi promised the sad woman we would be back before we left.

In Rehab, one of the clients yelled “Hi Pal!” as Magic walked in. The Rehab staff said they had been waiting and were just as excited as their clients to see Magic.

We did not make it to the 2^nd floor…Kathi wanted to keep her promise. We went back to the room where we stayed. Through the tears we got a smile…in fact several smiles. Her nurse pulled me aside to tell me we were giving her quality of life. “What a difference you made for her.” Of course more tears flowed.

We stayed another 30 minutes with her. Magic again knew how much this woman needed her and stood like a rock again. Her foot was crooked and she did not move an inch. The woman grabbed Magic’s halter and held on to it. Sometimes Magic would move her nose in position to blow hot air on the woman and she would smile. Then amazingly, the woman asked Kathi if she could hold Magic’s lead rope. Kathi gave it to her. One hand was holding the lead rope, the other hand was holding Magic’s halter and there was also a half emptied Kleenex box on her lap. She kept saying through her tears…..“She is so beautiful. “ I love you.” She continued whispering to Magic. “She’s listening to me.” (Not a dry eye anywhere on this team.)

Kathi had to tell her that we could only stay for 15 more minutes. The woman asked, “Can she stay with me while you go to lunch?” We laughed. Kathi told her we could not because Magic needed a bathroom break but we would be back next month to see her. She said thank you and told us to be sure and come to her room. Before we left she asked for a picture of Magic. Again there were confidentiality rules in place and we could not. However the next day I did go back and leave a framed picture of Magic for her with the words, “I loved spending time with you.”

While we were in her room, we all thought of those wonderful raffle prizes and knew we would probably buy some tickets on the way out. Kathi asked Betty W. to go get a stack of tickets and while we were waiting in the room, we could fill them out. Betty got a stack all right…..She got $21.00 worth…..3 for $1.00….63 slips to fill out…..all of us took some and wrote the WindChill Legacy on them. If we win they will be donated to the WindChill Memorial Auction August 14th.

The activity director met us out in the hall. She told us what a fantastic job we did. She told us she realized that we were different from other animal groups. We took our time. It was all about the residents having whatever time they needed with Magic. She apologized for trying to rush us and not giving us more time. She was in a hurry to get us to everyone.

She said not only the residents but the staff wanted to see us come again. She asked us to come on a regular basis. Kathi immediately told her to give me a call and we would be back. She also said that she will work on the issue of making sure that residents get their pictures taken with Magic the next time.

As we were leaving so many of the staff, residents, volunteers, and very enthusiastically the janitors asked us to come again. What a send off.

Visit to Golden Living Center (Superior, WI, 06/15/10)

6/15/2010 Outreach Visit to Golden Living Center in Superior, WI (by Paula Moore)

“Don’t take her away.” “She can’t go.” “Stay here.” “She is part of us now.” Of course the Golden Living residents are talking about Magic.

The staff said this was the biggest turnout ever for a program by the residents living in the Golden Living Center. Nobody was left in their rooms except one man. The community room was already full with 30 people as I overheard Carole say, “They keep on coming. The halls are full.”

What a day! A staff person best described it with this comment… “You brought so much joy today.”

It WAS a very joyful place. Residents and staff were thrilled to have us come and visit even though most did not know about us or about the horse we were bringing in for a visit. “You have got to be kidding…. would you repeat what you just said!” When they found out what I said was true, the excitement level grew exponentially.

There was a reason for such surprise at the Golden Living Center. When I called the Friday before Tuesday visit, to assure the activity director I had met and made plans with 2 months ago, that we were coming, I was stunned that she did not remember about our visit. Well how could she, it was her first week on the job. This new activity director had just transferred from Hayward. I explained what we do. “Are you really bringing a horse?” “Well let’s go through with it.” she said.

The staff adapted well to the surprise visit. A call went out over the intercom for staff to come help in the community room. Ten residents were having a snack where I originally planned to set -up and I hated to move them so I set up in a different spot. However the staff very efficiently moved them and all the tables for a better set-up.

We had a nice rounded row of about 30 patients and I was told to start my WindChill presentation… however more people kept coming in so I stopped. I was told to start again but I stopped as more kept coming. I waited and a 2^nd row of 20 was also formed and more kept on being added. There were visitors too. I heard one resident yell from out in the hall, “I am going to see a horse! Where is it? I’m coming. I am so excited.” We ended up with about 75 people squeezed in but actually with enough space so Magic could get to everyone.

One staff member said she could not believe it. “We cleared out the whole place except for one, he’s sleeping.” (Magic went to visit him in his room later.) What was so funny was that there was a shift change while we were there. Carole and Betty could hear the new staff members going into rooms and coming out puzzled looking for their patients and wondering where their patients were.

I finally began. All the lights went out. It was so quiet. I could not believe it. WindChill’s story had their full attention. Most of these people were not horse people but they were animal lovers. They loved the story of WindChill. Some cried…. One woman cried for WindChill. It bought back memories of her dogs that passed away. A few months ago she had to give up her new 6 month old puppy when she had to come into the nursing home. She said the puppy went to a good home but it just broke her heart to lose him. She followed Jeff and Magic around the room and many times she got to pet Magic and 3xs she gave Magic kisses. “I love her so much.” She said. She cried the whole time.

One man I talked to had been a horse wrangler out West. He broke horses and herded cattle. We had a good conversation. He wondered about the shoes we put on our horses at Raindance. He talked about having to be the boss while on the horses because the horses would look for ways to take advantage of him if he was weak. He loved Tennessee Walkers. He said when he was a bronco rider it was all about balance while being on a bucking horse and feeling the horse under you to know when the horse was done bucking and finally realized you were the boss.

One woman said she often had taken her horses on a walk. She loved walking her horses but one day they spooked and became a bit much for her to handle. Her husband was worried she would get hurt. She did not walk them again.

One resident did horse patrol in the service. During the day he patrolled alone but at night he always had a partner.

One woman told us how the horses on her father’s farm were only used for plowing but each day one of the children got to ride one of those horses ½ mile to get mail. After all those years she still is mad that her brothers got to do it and because she was a girl she hardly got to do it.

One woman remembers as a child, her next door neighbor having two Shetland ponies. She brought them over and they got to pet them and brush them but never got to ride them.

When Magic walked in, people just gasped. There were smiles galore. Some people said to Jeff to bring Magic over here while others just made an over here signal with their hands.

Jeff is so patient. He stoops down to get on the patient’s level who are in wheel chairs or just sitting. He goes slow giving each resident his full attention. Jeff says so many of the residents have private conversations with Magic. They bend over and whisper in her ear. Sometimes it is an I love you…Jeff calls them secrets and he usually stands back so they can have their privacy.

One resident petting Magic, who loved cowboys, was kidded by the staff person for not paying any attention to the cowboy (Jeff) but only to his horse.

One man said that Magic was “the perfect horse—except for her height.”

As Magic was yawning to her audience, people started laughing. One resident tried to hush everyone, “If we laugh too much you will scare her.” We assured them the more they laughed the more she does the yawning and she did.

Another man was petting Magic but then he got this far away look. The staff member with him said, “Horse memories are going through his mind. He has been around horses all his life.”

Jeff and Magic had another woman following them around the room. She loved the feel of Magic’s forelock. She loved twirling, twisting, shaping it. When she went crazy fluffing up Magic’s hair, Jeff said to the woman, “That’s how all the kids are wearing it now a days.”

Many of the women played with Magic’s mane and especially her forelock. They wondered why Magic wanted to hide her pretty face and beautiful eyes. They kept on pulling the forelock to the side and patting it down to stay but it never stayed.

Residents loved our t-shirts. WindChill’s eye just caught their eye.

One resident and her husband, who was visiting her, rescued greyhounds. He had a greyhound at home. He volunteers, at the nursing home. He said we are doing a fantastic job and was impressed with the quality of our program.

A staff member’s neighbor rescues horses. She has a group of volunteer women that call themselves the HORSIES.

One visitor had a little hairless dog with a big handlebar mustache. She asked if Magic would be scared of her dog. We said no. Then she thought it over and thought her dog would be the one to freak out instead. She and the dog stayed in the community room and petted Magic anyways.

While Magic was going around, individual alarms were going off as people stretched to pet Magic. It did not bother Magic in the least. An oxygen tank needed a quick adjustment when it started squealing just as Magic was being petted by that person using the oxygen tank. The staff person tried to adjust it slowly so as not to scare Magic too bad but when she saw how the short screeches did not phase Magic, she just did it normally and out came this very loud screech. Magic did not even budge an inch. She is a rock.

One gentleman said that he raised dogs, Springer spaniels. Horses were his next favorite animal but they were too expensive.

A doctor, complete with white coat and stethoscope, got out his cell phone and begged a staff member to take his picture with Magic.

While I was talking about WindChill, Jeff was waiting in the entry way. The minute Jeff walked in with Magic, he was surrounded by staff. They took pictures of themselves with Magic. Trish said the staff enthusiasm was contagious.

The manager wanted his picture taken with Magic to send to his granddaughter. “She will be in heaven!” Then he asked Trish if we were violating any rules or did he need to do any paperwork. Trish assured him that I had checked into all that. I had. 2 ½ years ago in preparation for the outreaches, I called up the Douglas County Health Dept. They transferred me to the most experienced person there. She said she knew of nothing preventing us from bringing Magic into the city or schools or nursing homes in Superior.

Trish asked if she could take pictures. The answer was yes but not of people’s faces. She did hands instead. It is wonderful work and I hope she will share the pictures at the BBQ.

A Social Services person said she had received 2 miniature goats for her birthday and now was hatching a new plan of attack for her next birthday… hinting for a miniature horse… “and since one can’t be by themselves…. 2 are needed.” She said gleefully.

We kept on hearing from staff and visitors, “So nice you do this.”

Just as we were leaving, the bird aviary caught the attention of Magic. She sure can move her head in different angles when very interested.

Trish and Betty W. also made the comment that when we first came in, the staff had the look of question marks all over their faces looking at us with ???????? but when we left after our outreach, they watched us go with !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!…. meaning flushed with excitement.

Before we left, the activity director said you will definitely be back and I am calling my Hayward connections so they can see your program too. Sure enough I got an email later that evening from the Hayward Nursing Home.

Carole, Betty W., Trish, and I will always remember, a 20 something grandson who adored his grandma. He made her laugh so much. When he had to leave while Magic was going around, he yelled to her, “Grandma…Don’t ride the horse!”

Bryant Elementary Girl Scout Troop (Superior, WI, 06/09/10)

6/9/2010 Outreach Visit to Bryant Elementary Girl Scout Troop by Paula Moore

Magic became an honorary GIRL SCOUT complete with her own badge filled sash which she wore proudly as she entered the room to her adoring Girl Scout fans.

This plan was hatched at the Diamond Royal Tack Horse Fair at the Mariner Mall back on March 27. The parent thought it would be great to have our program for her daughter’s 3^rd grade classroom and also her 5th grade daughter’s classroom. She started the plan by calling me and getting the information. However despite her enthusiasm and persistence, the 3^rd grade teacher and the 5^th grade teacher did not contact me. She then decided to go the route of her Girl Scout troop. She was thrilled when I said yes.

However there was one more obstacle, they met in a classroom at Bryant Elementary. The principal refused to have Magic be in that room because of the carpeting. Again the parent pressed on and finally got the ok for us to be in the cafeteria.

I now understand why the parent was so persistent. She has 3 very horse crazy daughters, a 3^rd grader, a 5^th grader and a 9^th grader. I saw them in action with Magic and Jazz. The youngest screamed. They all were head over heels in love and smothered Magic with hugs and kisses. The mother had to tell them to give the other girls a chance to see Magic.

The parent and I communicated a lot over the months. She decided to surprise all the girls. She went behind their backs emailing parents to get permission for the girls to pet Magic and have pictures taken. It was a lot of work and shows how dedicated she is.

When we got to the school and the girls saw our shirts they figured out what was up and they were very excited, peppering me with questions.

One of the reason we were there was to help the girls earn a badge.

Just before I started the presentation, I noticed the kids were working on cards for a girl who was in the hospital with pneumonia. I sat down with them and ask about the girl. They suggested I make a card for her too. So I did. I put stickers of WindChill and Walker on it. While I was doing that we talked about horses and other things.

I did my older power point with the girls. They really impressed Carole and Trish with their deep answers. One girl said she thought the person who did this to WindChill should do community work and be supervised working with horses to better understand their basic needs so her other horses will have a better life. One girl said it was both the owner and the boarder’s responsibility to provide WindChill with the attention he needed. One girl said the owner and the boarder were just too much into their own lives.

When the girls talked about whether we should have kept WindChill alive, one of them brought up a dog of hers that was in really bad shape when she rescued it from the pound, ribs showing, etc. All the girls knew this dog and shared the funny descriptions of the antics after he was rescued. I told the girls that they sure showed a lot of love for that dog. One story in particular that hit me was that the dog did not play. I made the comment that he did not have the time to learn that because he was in survival mode. Jeff made a profound comment too about keeping WindChill alive…”WindChill made the choice to live. He wanted to live. He kept whinnying for help.”

We all were thrilled to see Jeff bringing in Magic. He was all dressed up in a business suit, looking very CEO. He looked us over in our black jeans and WindChill T-shirts and said to us in a very CEO voice, “Didn’t you get the memo that you had to dress up for this?” However the girls did get back at him when I called him the cowboy. They asked Jeff, “Where’s your hat?”

Magic was so happy to be with her dad. There was a basketball game going on next door in the gym. The ball would crash against metal and reverberate. It did not bother Magic at all. Of course that could have been because she was with her Dad during the whole program. She just loves to lean up her body against him.

Magic did a great job. She is so sure of herself and knows her job well. After Magic went around 3 x’s, Kathi brought in Jazz. They stood in the hall so Jazz could watch and observe Magic. However Magic was the one observing Jazz. Magic kept turning her head around to see where Jazz was. It sure proved to me that a horse’s field of vision is wide. Any time Kathi moved Jazz in the slightest, Magic turned her head. Her neck muscles sure can flex.

Jazz was a bit jumpy with all the noise and especially the basketball hitting the metal in the gym. However she is a young horse at 4 ½ and she handled the noises better than Kathi expected. She was so good that Kathi thought she could try her out with these girls. Jazz’s eyes were huge today as she took everything in…wondering what was going on and wondering why was she there.

Jeff pulled Magic aside and it was her turn to observe Jazz. Kathi told the kids to tuck in their feet; Jazz had not learned space like Magic has. Jazz was excited to visit and was all gung ho. She did not quite understand and Kathi had to redirect her. However on the 3^rd try around, she finally understood and became very relaxed with her foot crooked while the girls gave her lots of love. By the time she got to the end of the row, she was in a happy zone with her foot crooked and her eyes almost completely shut. Kathi said she was almost asleep. It must have felt good to her soaking up all their love. She also must have felt safe too.

So it was an exciting outreach for all of us. Jazz is darn cute just like Magic. We did not have any accidents either. Kathi had Betty W. shadow Jazz with a red bucket, paper towel, and scraper with orders “If you see her tail raise, do not let it hit the floor. “ Betty was a very good sport but yet VERY serious about her job. She was inches away from that cute little butt. Two times Jazz picked up her tail and Betty went in but false alarm. We all laughed but we were glad Betty had fast reflexes just in case.

Of course the red clean up bucket may have contained grain so Jazz in the hallway had to check it out. However Magic noticed the movement and saw what she thought was us feeding Jazz a treat. Kathi warned us not to let Jazz put her head in the bucket again. It upsets Magic who thinks she should get a treat too…even if it is imaginary.

One Girl Scout was too allergic to hay to be in the room with Magic and Jazz. She was not able to be there. Since she was a 5^th grader I sent home a copy of the book, Amazing Horse Facts and Trivia.

The troop had individual pictures taken with Magic as well as a group picture. Again Magic relished being the center of attention and being surrounded by her adoring Girl Scout fans.

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