I love idioms - a phrase or expression where the figurative meaning may be different from the literal meaning - the cleverer the better. The English language is chock full of delightful, and admittedly a few derogatory, ones involving horses. According to Mentalfloss.com (itself a great idiom), the phrase, "hold your horses!" originated in 800 BCE from a line in Homer's  Iliad ; "one horse town" originated in the 1850s from a Shasta County California gold-mining town called One Horse because it had only one ole gray mare; and "get off your high horse" used to be a compliment: only soldiers and royalty rode tall war chargers. Then, as people lost respect for the high and mighty during the revolutions of the late 1700s, the high horse was considered snooty and pretentious.
 
Click to see aerial footage of our barn and the roof damage
We've come up with our own idiom, "Support NCEFT Roof to Hoof," the equine version of soup to nuts. Yes, quite literally the second-story roof on NCEFT's 100-year-old barn is decades old, and we must spend an estimated $50,000 to replace it this summer as it cannot take another hard winter. Figuratively, by supporting NCEFT roof to hoof, you are sustaining every person - staff, patients and volunteers - and every horse at NCEFT. Our barn is the starting place for the countless moments of hope and healing for our patients and clients. 
Horse of a Different Color  by Richard Sheppard
By rebuilding a roof, y ou really are enabling our ability to fulfill our mission to help those with disabilities. Now that's a horse of a different color! Donate today at and we promise not to look a single gift horse in the mouth!
 
 - Cherie Hammer, NCEFT Development Director

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION
 
We send a huge shout-out to the over 150 volunteers who selflessly give of their time to help NCEFT. We simply could not function without your dedication. Regardless of whether volunteers give 1 hour or 100 hours, all time and talent is valued and appreciated.  Last year, volunteers donated over 5,000 hours to NCEFT. In April, we celebrated Volunteer Appreciation Week, culminating in a yummy dinner outside the barn. We would like to recognize all the volunteers who formally recorded their hours for the 2016 calendar year. The words thank you are simply not enough.
 
Learn more about volunteering at NCEFT
TITANIUM VOLUNTEERS  (Over 75 hours)
 
Mellanie Blockie, Taylor Cox, Regan Doi, Scott DuBridge, Kathleen Dugan, Alison Haazer, Jewel Murphy, Ron Tallion, Carol Terwilliger, Anne Van Camp, Kay Von Tess, Terri Williams
 
PLATINUM VOLUNTEERS  (50+ - 75 hours)
 
Cherie Bogart, Susan Bosse-Atwell, Alex Brady, Sofia Bliss Carrascosa, Charlotte Clark, Susan Cranna, Susie Fasanaro, Taylor Ford, Cole Hedges, Amy Huttlinger, John Little, Cheryl Marelich, Nate Potter, Sue Sartor, Isabella (Izzy) Scotti
 
GOLD VOLUNTEERS  (25+ - 50 hours)
 
Nick Alftin, Cole Bauer, Ryan Calbert, Robin Dalaise, Chantal Haazer, Lindsey Gendreau, Micki Hippeli, Holly Kuhn, Cameron Lindsey, Marissa Maas, Ray Macias, Sarah Bryan Maroney, Jessie Modlin, Joe Montero, Ajay Moturi, Anya Moturi, Joyce Murphree, Pat Murphree, Liam Nealon, Debby Olson, Jacey Phipps, Hanna Ready, Sophie Sankar, Scott Seely, Fran Stewart, Hayley Taweel, Patty Waddington, Gayle Wilbert-Paoletti
 
SILVER VOLUNTEERS  (10+ - 25 hours)
 
Gina Andreatta, Brighton Balfrey, Kaitlin Baldwin, Lauri Boyer, Naomi Burke, Jake Canevaro, Justine Efcavitch, Tabatha Gourvenec, Taylor Gray, Hannah Greenspan, Mary Ellen Harrington, Zoe Harris, Ariella Hartley, Ally Ick, Jared Juarez, Corinne Kason, Tara Kielty, Claire Leopold, Megan Leopold, Alexia Lerner, Justin Marelich, Brianna Maroney, Deb McClure, Mark Mickelson, Cameron Montalvo, Richard Newton, Megan Nicholls, Pamela Olson, Lynda Paffrath, Sammy Phillips, Kaitlin Raynor, Alison Cook Roskowski, Jerry Salinas, Tricia Seibold, Sarah Seminaro,  Daphne Smith, Ilan Toussieh, Holly Wakeman, Rachel Zeim, Jennifer Zweben
 
BRONZE VOLUNTEERS  (up to 10 hours)
 
Volunteers enjoying tacos and accolades at the annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner
Marie Amundsen, Sophie Amundsen, Gayle Ascher, Cheryl Basi, Stephanie Bedrossia, Karen Bellister, Margaret Belton, Lynn Berger, Radhika Bhatnagar, Allison Bhavsar, Lita Billman, Rebekah Bodner, Andrea Boscoe, Lori Brockman, Sara Brockman, Gabrielle Burns, Jacqueline Cantrell, Christian Castelo, Evan C astelo, Stacy Chiang, Terry Clark, Dominic Constantz, Sylvia Constantz, Alex Doi, Maxine Doss, Emery Dutta, Beth Fairman, Gina Foti, Alexa Friesel, Staci Friesel, Cameron Fruehe, Corrie Galvan, Caitlin Gaudet, Jayden Gaulocher, Suzanne Gaulocher, Gina Glazer, Tami Glover, Alix Gotthard, Ava Gotthard, Maya Gotthard, Bob Gould, Amanda Guthmann, Zoe Hammer,  Marilee Herrera-Peterson, Toni King, Amy Kinion, Diana Kivirahk, Tara Kochnar, Megan Kravec, Ari Lattanzi,  Samantha Mach, Kate Maglian, Cara Maglian, Jack McLean, Isabelle McNeil, Bria Michelsen, Ken Mills, Micol Montesano, Katie Munro, Sid Parihar, George Peters, Ava Polioni, Carolyn Potney, Alicia Quilici, Emma Roellig, Barbara Sandoval, Krystal Singh, Kathleen Smiley, K adence Smith, Jayne Smith, Louisa Sonsini, Diane Sonsini, Jenny Sullivan, Sandra Terribilini, Madison Tidwell, Carl Tuttle, Gibson Verkuil, Eliza Warde, Alexis West, Alexa Zaino


Our decades-old roof needs to be replaced
SUPPORT NCEFT ROOF TO HOOF
Everyone who visits NCEFT remarks on our magnificent barn. Years ago, NCEFT's property was a dairy farm, and our beautiful main barn is original to that time. But at 100-years old, the barn is showing its age. The second-story roof is decades old, and this hard winter resulted in leaks and extensive damage.
 
Nearly five years ago, we replaced the roof on the lower barn level. Now we need to finish the job!  You've been a part of NCEFT's more than 45 years of continuous operation. Your compassionate assistance is what makes our extraordinary community thrive. Supporting NCEFT's Roof to Hoof campaign will make you a part of our next 45 years.  

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Click for aerial footage of our barn and the roof damage

Susan with one of her favorite redheads, Jay Jay
VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: SUSAN CRANNA
Virtually every type of equine-assisted therapy NCEFT offers depends upon the volunteers who walk alongside patients and clients to keep them safe, who help sweep, weed and maintain our beautiful 12-acre facility and who help with office and event activities. Susan Cranna, one of many wonderful regular volunteers, recently shared with us how she feels about the time she spends at NCEFT:
 
"At NCEFT, I feel welcomed as an essential part of the community. Ever since my first day, I've realized just how much of a difference I really can make in the life of a patient...There is something magical about this place - it feels that way - except that it isn't magic. It's actually the result of a great deal of effort on the part of patients, therapists and instructors, volunteers and staff...To have direct involvement with the progress of patients and clients is very rare and incredibly meaningful. I know a lot of my fellow volunteers feel the same. The icing on the cake is that I get to carry my experiences away from NCEFT and with me into other interactions. Being there has made me aware of how fortunate I am to be able to move and communicate with relative ease. That awareness makes me so much more likely to be patient and understanding in other areas of my life. Somehow, after time at NCEFT, my worries don't seem like such a very big deal after all. When you volunteer at NCEFT, you definitely take away just as much, if not more, than you give."
 
Here are a few fun facts about Susan.
 
Cherie: Where were you born?   Susan: Portland, Oregon 
C: How long have you been volunteering with NCEFT?   Susan: Since 2014
C: What's the most unique job you have ever had?   Susan: Housemaid for Japanese family
C: Chocolate or vanilla?   Susan: Chocolate mint
C: What's your favorite horse color?   Susan: Red with white roots
C: If you could visit any place in the world, where would you go?   Susan: Morocco 
C: What is your favorite non-horse related activity?   Susan: Oh, so many things, I'll go with gardening 
C: iPhone or Android?   Susan: iPhone 
C: What is the last book you read?    Susan: Blindfold Horse: Memories of a Persian Childhood by Shusha Guppy  
C: Favorite cartoon character?   Susan: Bugs Bunny
WEBSITE UPDATE
 
In early, May NCEFT's website received a major update to its look and feel. We will continue to tinker with pages over the next few weeks, but in the meantime, check out the new site and let us know what you think!