The scene beckons those who arrive at Freedom Reigns Ranch, stressed from the realities of life, to exhale. The warm smell of cedar trees and the haze of a dusty dirt road give a nostalgic feeling as you wind the half-mile off the beaten path to the Ranch. Rounding the corner, a sign saying “Welcome” hangs over the entrance on a suspended beam in true western fashion, backed by a pasture of horses grazing peacefully.
A black horse stands between two others, his dark coat glistening in the sun. A soft nicker carries over distance as he looks up to see who has arrived. His endearing look begging for attention makes even those who tend to be hesitant around horses unable to resist his plea. He walks over to the fence and lowers his head for you to scratch him in the perfect spot. You’d never know that when this horse first came to the ranch his very life hung in the balance.
Late in the evening on July 8, 2024, Freedom Reigns Ranch received a call from the sheriff's office to provide care for a horse that needed immediate help. He was seized from his previous owners with pending animal cruelty charges. Both the Sheriff and the Department of Agriculture didn't think he would survive. “I remember thinking 'This one is going to end in heartbreak,'” says Founder and Executive Director Carissa Ramsdell. “While I am always hopeful to a fault, I remember he was so critically emaciated and had a resting respiratory and heart rate so dangerously high that I couldn't believe he was still standing.” But, none-the-less, through his tired eyes, Ramsdell saw the indelible spark of a desire to live that pierces through even the most hopeless of circumstances. And so fight they did.
Gabriel's bloodwork indicated that his organs were already shutting down. He was critically underweight and his body had already turned off his ability to sweat in an effort to preserve what little strength remained.
For 21 days, the volunteers at Freedom Reigns Ranch stayed by his side. Checking on him at the top of every hour around the clock, bringing tiny rations of nutritionally fortified hay every three hours, nebulizing him to support his respiratory system, and providing refreshing showers on the hot days, since his body lost the ability to cool itself. For the first five days, Gabriel didn’t feel comfortable even laying down to rest, which was required if he was going to heal. When he did finally lay down, his body was too weak to support him getting up so volunteers used a tractor and straps to lift him to his feet: multiple times per day, every day, until finally he was strong enough to do it on his own. And on Day 18, like a newborn foal learning to take it’s first steps on wobbly legs, Gabriel did it -- he stood to his feet for the very first time by himself.
It was a big victory! Once Gabriel could rise on his own it meant that he was gaining proper strength and that his body was recovering. And against all odds, Gabriel continued to improve.
He gained weight, then muscle. His heart murmur healed, and he was strong enough to have his first farrier (hoof trimmer) visit, his first dental visit, and eventually to begin short easy walks to build up his endurance.
And then something even more miraculous happened:
The kids and families that came to the Ranch were able to meet Gabriel. They saw his skeletal frame and an animal that looked more like a cartoon than a horse, yet they told him how beautiful and strong he was. They told him they loved him and that he should never give up. They wrote prayers and left them taped to his stall.
“Sometimes healing begins with something as simple as having someone or something count on you, " says Ramsdell. "For kids who have experienced trauma, learning to care for a living creature helps them discover their own intrinsic value. In helping a creature who had been so disregarded by humans heal, they were healing a part of their own heart." Ranch staff would often hear participants encouraging Gabriel in saying how sometimes, they too felt like him and that things feel hopeless, but that they should never give up because we were fighting with him.
After three months of rehabilitation, Gabriel had put on hundreds of pounds but all of it could be taken away, as his owners who had neglected him within an inch of his life wanted him back. It took going to court and the district attorney offering a plea deal of cruelty charges and required surrender of Gabriel to Freedom Reigns Ranch to secure his safety. He officially was awarded to Freedom Reigns Ranch on September 24, 2024.
That alone is miraculous enough, but the miracle doesn’t stop there.
Freedom Reigns Ranch isn’t your typical barn or riding stable. Founded 12 years ago as a faith-based 501(c)(3) charity, the Ranch is dedicated to a unique, dual-purpose mission: rescuing equines from abuse and neglect, and pairing those rehabilitated horses with children and young adults who have endured trauma or face severe life challenges. Participants come from many different walks of life, many having endured the worst humanity has to offer, but they all find common ground here as they walk out healing on the back of a horse.
Once Gabriel was strong enough and received training to equip him to safely interact with a variety of people, he joined the beloved Session Herd that pours back into the lives of people who are learning to overcome hard things. See, Gabriel knows exactly what it feels like to be broken, and he knows exactly how to help them find their way back.
It’s a scene that plays out time and again: a young man or woman is having fun riding and at the perfect moment of pause their session leader asks how they would describe Gabriel.
Answers fitting of the most noble of steeds pour out: “strong,” “powerful,” “beautiful,” “majestic,” “loved,” “friend.”
They have no idea that the horse carrying them through their battle nearly lost his life to one. “Would you like to hear Gabriel’s story?” a session leader asks.
What follows is usually astounded silence and a puzzled expression, the kind indicating an internal wrestling so great it has the power to change the trajectory of a life. The question? 'If I don’t define Gabriel by what he has been through and how people hurt him, maybe, just maybe, I don’t have to be defined by what has happened to me either.'
It’s an interaction that plays out constantly at the Ranch. Horses who were once considered unwanted, disregarded, or beyond help can find complete restoration and offer comfort to others.
Freedom Reigns serves over 300 individuals a year, logging more than 3,200 hours of programming in hope-focused mentorship. Sessions pair one participant with a dedicated, trained mentor for the entire duration of their time with the Ranch. This creates a high level of trust, consistency, and personalized support. While the sessions are therapeutic in nature, the ranch maintains its focus as the fastest growing segment of mental health support termed “Equine-Assisted Learning.” Unlike Equine Therapy, Equine Assisted Learning is an experiential-focused framework to develop personal and social skills while centered on connection, relationship, and emotional regulation, during unhurried spent time. Remarkably, Freedom Reigns Ranch has provided all of its programs free-of-charge since inception and credits the community for rallying support. “Most of our more than 600 donors give $1,000 or less each year,” Ramsdell says. “We can’t do what we do without them." Because the sessions are completely free, families who are already overwhelmed by financial hardship never have to worry about whether they can afford a safe place for their kids to heal.
FreedomReignsRanch.com /@freedomreignsranch
“I remember thinking 'This one is going to end in heartbreak.'” -- Carissa Ramsdell
How You Can Get Involved
1. Sponsor a Horse or buy a bale of hay! Caring for a large herd is incredibly resource-intensive. Sponsoring a session horse helps cover the cost of feed, hay, veterinary care, and farrier services, allowing the ranch to keep their mentorship sessions free for participants. The Ranch currently has 18 Session Horses and is rehabilitating 3 rescue horses.
2. Sponsor a Session - Though provided at no-cost to families, the cost to the Ranch provide a one-on-one session at Freedom Reigns Ranch is $168.
3. Volunteer Your Time You don’t need to be a horse expert to make a difference. Freedom Reigns Ranch is powered by a Volunteer Herd of 80+ core volunteers who serve as Session Leaders, Ranch Assistants, members of the Horse Care or Barn Team, and over 450 volunteers who help at special events.
4. Fulfill a Ranch Need In-kind donations are the lifeblood of the ranch's daily operations. Whether it’s picking up simple snacks, bottled water, and bird house craft kits for the kids to use during sessions, or purchasing essential supplies for the horses from local feed stores, every item makes an impact