Spirit Reins Rides New Path During Pandemic Spirit Reins is all about second chances...
by Charlotte Kovalchuk
SPIRIT REINS’ FOUNDER, RHONDA SMITH, had her second chance when she survived a car crash, which inspired her to open the facility. Many of the horses that were saved from abuse or euthanasia have found a new loving home at Spirit Reins. Children who experience trauma find healing through connections with horses. Even the organization got a fresh start during the pandemic. Located on 125 acres at 2055 County Road 284 in Liberty Hill, Spirit Reins is a not-for-profit organization that partners equine professionals and horses to help children and families in Central Texas who have experienced complex trauma. The story of how Spirit Reins came to be started with Rhonda’s own traumatic moment.
Photo by Amanda Wintenburg Photography
HEALING FAMILIES Rhonda walked away from an accident she shouldn’t have survived. In 1999, she was run over by an 18-wheeler and, she says, “I got a second chance at life, and I wanted to make it count.” Through Spirit Reins, she was able to combine her passion for children and horses, as well as her desire to heal families like her sister’s from the cycle of trauma. As a young adult, Rhonda felt like she didn’t have the power to save her sister or her nieces and nephews, so she poured her life’s work into understanding childhood adversity and finding the best approach to stop the generational cycle of trauma. In 2003, she opened Spirit Reins to serve children ages 4 to 25 impacted by trauma, most of whom are in the foster and juvenile justice systems and “have experienced the worst of life.” Caregivers are
also involved in therapy sessions, which Rhonda says sets Spirit Reins apart from other trauma organizations because it serves the whole family. In 2010, Spirit Reins began providing equine-assisted psychotherapy services. Each child would work with a therapist, equine professional, and a horse. Equine therapy is important because the brain of a horse is similar to the developing brain of a child impacted by trauma. As prey animals, horses are keenly aware of their surroundings and constantly live in the moment to feel safe with a fight-flight-or-freeze response. Clients often live in that same survival mode. However, their actions don’t always match their internal feelings, and horses can sense and point that out in a non-judgmental way to help them gain insight about those behaviors. Spirit Reins is home to 33 horses that are free to be themselves and roam across the facility’s peaceful hill
Photo courtesy of Monica Trout 4
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