Who we are
Shining Hope Farms was founded in 2002 by Paul and Milinda Kirkpatrick in response to the needs in the community to provide therapeutic services in an enriching farm environment. The purpose of the farms’ services is to improve the quality of life of the participants as well as their families. Shining Hope Farms’ programs have been structured to serve individuals and groups with a variety of disabilities such as Cerebral Palsy, Autism, Down’s Syndrome, Developmental Disabilities, Brain Injuries, Hypotomia, and the like. Our clients find wellness, strength, and hope on the back of a horse.
Shining Hope Farms’ Mission
Shining Hope Farms is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to enable children and adults to reach their full potential through the use of equine assisted activities and therapies.
Our Impact
Through the impact of our volunteers and donors, Shining Hope Farms has been successfully able to make our rehabilitative and recreational programs accessible to the poor and needy in our community by making the programs free-of-charge to the majority of participants.
Participants per week across our three locations
Number of volunteers that helped our program in 2017
Hours donated by our volunteers in 2017
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News & Events
First Ever Equine Trail Sports Event Held in North Carolina
Over the weekend of March 30-31 Shining Hope Farms hosted the first ever Equine Trail Sports event in North Carolina at the Conover farm. The event went off without a hitch and we are incredibly grateful for such an amazing event where we had the opportunity to meet some incredible individuals, beautiful and talented horses, and top notch volunteers.
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What is Therapeutic Riding? Meet Amy and find out.
Meet therapeutic rider Amy, her sister Frankie, and her instructor Verena. You will see firsthand what a therapeutic riding lesson looks like at Shining Hope Farms and the types of impacts it can have on a rider.
read moreNoah’s Story
Noah was born at 25 weeks and weighed 1 lb. 15 oz. Shortly after birth Noah had a stroke. He was diagnosed with prematurity, developmental delay, and significant gastro intestinal complications as an infant, resulting in the need for a feeding tube. Not long after his second birthday, Noah began receiving Occupational Therapy services at Shining Hope Farms, which utilized Hippotherapy (from the Greek “hippo” meaning “horse”) as a treatment strategy.
Noah is now five years old and has been receiving Occupational Therapy for 3 years. During that time Noah has improved his core strength, balance and normalized his tone allowing him to stand and take 10 – 20 steps with one hand assistance. These improvements have also enabled him to maintain his position on his horse. The horse that Noah rides for his treatment sessions is Captain Hook, or Cappy for short.
Noah’s mom says, “Coming to Shining Hope Farms to ride Cappy and to visit the wonderful staff is the highlight of Noah’s week. Noah was barely able to sit up on his own when he first came to the farm for Hippotherapy. Today because of Hippotherapy, his muscles are significantly stronger and he is cruising and learning to walk on his own. Peace surrounds our family as soon as we enter the farm. We are so grateful to have such a remarkable place for Noah to come to. He tells everyone he meets about the farm and Cappy. Noah would not be where is or who he is today without the people and horses of Shining Hope Farms.”
