On 60 acres in Porter, Coyote Creek Sporthorses feels worlds away from the pace of northeast Houston. A creek borders the property, coyotes call at night, and deer wander through the fields. What began nearly 20 years ago as Crown Breeze Sporthorses has evolved into Coyote Creek, a family-owned equestrian facility offering boarding, training, lessons, and breeding.
Yet, the true heart of the property is found in the quiet moments between a horse and a person carrying something heavy.
For Tracy Thomas, that mission is deeply personal. A breast cancer survivor, Tracy remembers going through treatment surrounded by support but feeling isolated in ways only another survivor could understand. After her own cancer journey, she wanted to create a place where people affected by cancer could come without cost, judgment, or expectations.
Through Coyote Creek’s nonprofit therapy program, cancer patients, survivors, caregivers, children, and loved ones affected by cancer can experience equine-assisted emotional healing. The program focuses on emotional wellness. Sessions take place on the ground, making the work less about riding and more about connection.
Many participants have never been around horses. Then they place a hand on a thousand-pound animal and something changes. Tracy has watched people break down in tears while brushing a horse, only to have the horse gently lower its head and lean closer.
“I always say I didn’t do anything,” Tracy says. “The horse did.”
Tracy often designs activities around each participant’s story. In one session, a woman grieving her sister wrote memories on blocks and placed them in a bucket while working with a horse named Bella. During the exercise, Bella reached into the bucket and tossed out a single block. The woman immediately recognized it as the memory she’d been unable to release.
For Tracy, moments like that are why the program exists.
What moved Marketing Director Tatiana Sweeney most was learning why Thomas created the nonprofit.
“Once I learned what Tracy was doing and why she was doing it, my first thought was, ‘What can I do to help?’” Tatiana says.
Tatiana has helped expand community awareness through marketing, signage, and website improvements. She believes one of the most important messages is that horses can impact anyone.
“You don’t have to get on a horse to appreciate it,” Tracy shares.
That philosophy extends throughout Coyote Creek. Head trainer Emma Baki grew up riding at the barn and eventually returned after college. She has helped grow the lesson program to nearly 80 students.
“Riding is about 10% of what you do with horses,” Baki says. “The rest is horsemanship.”
Baki wants riders to see horses as partners, not equipment.
Looking ahead, Coyote Creek plans to expand with an event venue for weddings, celebrations, and community gatherings. Yet, the mission that came first remains unchanged.
For those facing cancer, supporting a loved one through treatment, or learning how to move forward afterward, Coyote Creek offers something rare: a place to arrive exactly as they are.
It’s a mission that Greg Hord, one of the founding owners, also takes to heart.
“Greg is the heart of Coyote Creek,” says Tracy. “Without him, none of this would be possible.”
Sometimes healing begins with a brush in one hand and a horse leaning close enough to say, without words, you are not alone.