OLDS - Longtime therapeutic riding volunteer Linda Leggette has received an award for her efforts with the Mount View Special Riding Association (MVSRA) in Olds.
For the past 19 years, through the MVSRA, Leggette, an Innisfail-area resident, has volunteered herself, her horses and mule every Monday to help physically and mentally challenged youth and adults get physical exercise, skills training, and develop confidence by riding horses -- and/or the mule.
MVSRA is accredited by and operates under the auspices of CanTRA (the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association).
For all that assistance, on June 11, Leggette received the Rhonda Davis Outstanding Volunteer Award, presented by Brenda Spanier, CanTRA Alberta-N.W.T. Zone representative and an Alberta Equestrian Federation board member.
MVSRA president Burt Hunt says Leggette richly deserves the award.
"We are so very proud of our Linda for achieving the award, particularly so because there is only one volunteer given the award in Canada annually," he says.
"Linda is the consummate volunteer and so deserves this award. She has, over the years, volunteered herself and some 13 different horses as well as the MVSRA’s longest service equine -- her mule Rudy -- who dutifully still pulls carts and carries riders each and every Monday.”
On Mondays, Leggette's day off from full-time employment at a local resort, her volunteerism begins at about 2 p.m. as she fetches and loads her horses and mule, driving them nearly 50 kilometres from her acreage east of Innisfail to lessons at Olds Regional Exhibition's Caluori Pavilion.
She then provides cart rides for an hour to those who cannot ride themselves. She also leads and coaches riders through two other sessions.
She then loads up the horses and makes the trek home, leaving sometimes after 9 p.m.
Hunt says Leggette is "an extremely competent horsewoman and her coaching of both riders and other volunteers is integral to our program.
"Her keen eye and careful comments lead to a better experience for all of the riders, horses, instructors and volunteers," he adds. "We don’t know what we would do without her and her animals at the sessions."
Leggette's contributions don't stop there. She promotes the club among others in "horse circles," solicits volunteers and even obtains donations for the MVSRA.
Leggette has a background in graphic design and has just rewritten and upgraded the MVSRA’s promotional brochure.
She also treats riders and volunteers to a “pie night” by baking six to eight pies per session.
"This award could go to any one of hundreds of volunteers across the country. Why me?" Leggette asks.
"There are times when I think I volunteer more for myself than anything," she adds. "I get so much out of the time I spend with these riders. They have taught me so much. I could do all sorts of things with the little spare time I have, but I can’t imagine anything that could be more important or more fulfilling than this.”
Hunt hopes Leggette's enthusiasm will spur others to volunteer for the MVSRA as well.
"We are always in need of volunteers," he says. "It is such a good cause, so very fulfilling."
You can get more information about volunteering for MVSRA at www.mountviewriding.com and learn more about CanTRA at www.cantra.ca.
This story was written with information provided by Ken Hunt.
