JACOB'S FUND :: McKenna Farms Mission Experience, Late Spring 2014 part 2 - Many hands make light work

A football team, a bathroom and a shed – the makings of a busy mission experience!


Our job this weekend is to clear out brush that has grown along the fence between the corral and the trail, plant shrubs and flowers, replace two of the stations, paint and make repairs, and weed and mulch.

Football players removing a huge tree


It’s a tall order, but we’re about to get some major reinforcement. Nearby Harrison High School has just delivered a busload of students who are pouring onto the parking lot, eager to start work. They are divided into work teams and quickly dispatched to locations around the barn, farmhouse, and the riding arenas.


Soon more than a dozen young men from the football team join us and begin removing small trees and brush from along the fence line and some larger trees that have fallen along the trail to the creek. The speed and efficiency with which they do this is astounding.

Members of Christ United Methodist working on the Sensory Trail

Now the Jacob Beachy Sensory Trail is thrumming with activity. As the young men of Harrison High haul brush and trees away, two members of our team remove old whiteboard and chalkboard, making way for the new, weather-resistant Plexiglas boards. Two more are busily wielding cans of spray paint, applying a fresh coat of primary colors to the shape sorter and hanging tubes and even a bit to themselves. And still a surprising number of us are hunched over, attacking weeds with unusual vigor. Even Jacob’s baby sister and brother get into the act, helping position the posthole digger and planting flowers.

Jacob's sister Elyse (left) & friend repainting the shape sorter


The sun climbs higher and it’s hot! We’ve been working for more than three hours. It’s time for the high school students to depart, and they quickly assemble and board the bus, then disappear around the bend in the road.


The trail is quieter now, with only the occasional metallic thud of the posthole digger, the regular buzz of carpenter bees and the thwacking and sucking sound of Jacob’s younger siblings’ shoes in the mud hole they’ve discovered. 
An old saying pops into our heads: many hands make light work. With the help of the high school students, we’ve accomplished much of our work on the trail.

Jacob's brother Max helping out


After lunch, we’re ready for more chores. Sonya, The Red Thread Promise’s Vice-President, tackles painting one of the bathrooms. She’ll have to do this alone, since there’s no space for another person inside the bathroom once she gets the ladder up.


The rest of us head to the tool shed. This is more than a clearing out and reorganizing mission. You may recall that Jessie Moore, Director of McKenna Farms, lost Will, her husband and father of her two young sons, to a massive heart attack in December 2012.


Will and McKenna Farms were inextricably entwined. So much of the daily life of the farm depended on Will, and Will’s toolshed has remained pretty much untouched since his death.


We gently consult Jessie as to what should be done with each item. Sarah, Jacob’s mom, is known for her organizing skills, so once the piles are sorted, she directs us in reorganizing the shed.

Before and after - beautiful!


We head back to the farmhouse for a cool drink of water, and to admire Sonya’s handiwork. The bland off-white has been replaced with a first coat in an inviting shade of green.


Sweat trickles down our backs and faces. We are dirty and red-faced and we smile, thinking of the children who will be back to ride the trail Monday morning, breathing in the scent of sage and rosemary, tossing frogs into squares and circles and stars, playing the chimes, and talking about the pink and purple and yellow blossoms.


They’ll notice the freshly painted bathroom – kids love color. And although they won’t peer into the toolshed, the new farm manager will, and his job will be a little easier. In our mind’s eye we see the faces of those children, and our thoughts return to the conversations we’ve had with them and their families.


Exciting things are happening, and we’ll share those with you soon.

Looking for fresh faces for an upcoming trip!


Do thoughts of the children you’re helping support bring a smile to your face? We hope so. You’re an important part of what we do, and thoughts of you, too, makes us smile.


Would you like to join us on our next trip to McKenna Farms in Dallas, GA, or visit our other partnering therapy center, Hilltop Equestrian Center in West Alexandria, Ohio? If so, please let us know. Email Glenna or call 513-423-0108.

JACOB'S FUND :: A Day with Cecilia

This little angel is too cute for words. Here is Cecilia during her speech therapy session at McKenna Farms.

JACOB'S FUND :: Contagious Joy

Speech therapy with Cecilia

Recently, TRTP grant writer, Jessica, visited our partners at McKenna Farms and met Cecilia. Now we'd like to introduce you to her.

***** 

Cecilia is a beautiful little girl, so full of life and cheer! Cecilia agreed to let us spend some time with her during her speech therapy session during my visit to McKenna Farms, a gift I will never forget.

After listening to her joyfully point out things like an oven, ladder, and refrigerator and what each does, I made my way to the lobby to introduce myself to her parents and gush over what I had just witnessed. I was deeply moved that her parents would find a comfort level with me and were willing to share her story.

When Cecilia's mother was 25 weeks pregnant, the doctor found water on the baby's brain and suggested that she consider abortion. Her parents decided to continue to full term and meet their baby girl. Days following her birth, surgeons operated on her tiny brain for the first time, with four additional surgeries to follow. 

The family recently moved to Georgia and has been bringing Cecilia to McKenna Farms for over two months. They are thrilled with the progress she has made and are happy to report she will be starting hippotherapy very soon. The two relish their daughter's positive attitude: never a complaint, always cheerful. What a role model this darling girl is!

I suspect all who meet Cecilia feel the warmth of her contagious joy reach into the deepest parts of their hearts. That day I thanked God for touching little Cecilia's life and for allowing her joy to trickle down into my heart. That precious, untainted heart rescued me from the cares and burdens of the world, lifting me above the clouds to the warmth of the sun.

My time spent with her gave me a clearer vision of what our small lives are really about.

~ Jessica, TRTP Grant Writer

JACOB'S FUND :: A grant writer and a big ole hippotherapy farm

Jessica and one of McKenna Farms' therapy horses

Recently, TRTP grant writer, Jessica, visited our partners at McKenna Farms (Dallas, GA). What began as a research trip—to give her a taste of the true Jacob's Fund experience—morphed into something more meaningful than she could have hoped!

***** 

It was a beautiful Friday morning. Skies cleared as the brilliance of the sunlight pierced the gloomy puffs that enveloped the city only hours earlier. Just as the rush of traffic quieted itself, I made my journey to the outskirts of town. Passing shops and eateries, small businesses and neighborhoods, my little car finally rolled to a stop in front of the small pastures where unsuspecting horses grazed nearby.

There, nestled in the midst of ordinary life, my adventure began.  

Jessica and tour guide, Belen

I found my way to the front desk where I met my smiling tour guide for the day, Belen. We began walking the grounds and found ourselves at McKenna Farm's indoor arena, the newest addition to the property. What an amazing space! Belen's gratitude for such a welcome provision spilled over into her description of its great importance. In years past as all hippotherapy and therapeutic riding was done in the outdoor arena, any inclement weather postponed the children's therapy frequently in winter and spring months. With the addition of this large covered space, the children were able to continue their therapy without any interruptions, protected from the elements, a priceless gift!

At the head of the Jacob Beachy Sensory Trail

We continued down the path to the Jacob Beachy Sensory Trail, named after our own Jacob Noah Beachy. As we walked along the trail, observing each sensory station, I imagined what it would be like to be one of these children—to see the world through the eyes of someone born with a disability.

• How much would it mean to laugh if I often felt discomfort or pain? 
• How much would it mean to smell the sweetness of the herbs and hear the melodic chirps from the birds when I was usually indoors? 
• How much would it mean to see the various colors and shapes and feel different textures? 

Not only to experience all of these things, but to experience them pleasantly... not as loud, intrusive noises and odors pressing in to overwhelm, but as gifts meant to be enjoyed. I closed my eyes and envisioned all of the delightful moments that must take place on this very trail in the midst of healing therapy.

Beyond all of the trees surrounding the trail, beyond disability and limitation, there lies refuge and peace for children in need. A place all their own. Amazed by what such simple materials could accomplish, I wandered up to the therapy rooms where I met Cecilia. You can meet her too in our next post.

~ Jessica, TRTP Grant Writer

View from the trail