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Riding Through Challenges - A Story of Two Brothers
by Madison Bloomquist |
| Amanda Anderson and her sons, William and Connor Bellows, didn’t have any experience with horses when they came to River Valley Riders in 2022. But Amanda had heard great things about the benefits of equine-assisted services for people with autism, like her sons, from Connor’s support planner. Almost immediately, she started to see those benefits. “By the second session, William was excited to come back,” Amanda says. “Connor can be a little harder to read, but as soon as we started driving down that long driveway, he had a little smirk on his face and started clapping. I knew immediately, this is where they need to be.” |
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| Connor, 15, is nonverbal and has challenges with gross motor skills, whereas William, 9, struggles behaviorally, Amanda says. But after a few years of riding, both have gained incredible physical strength - especially in their cores, stamina, and posture - and mental and emotional improvements. “It’s been so cool to see Connor learn how to tap his horse or give a head nod to give cues,” Amanda says. “Last year, we even heard a very clear, strong ‘Go’ from him to walk on. It was the coolest thing - I was clapping, his sidewalkers and leader were clapping, it was awesome.” |
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| William’s greatest benefits have come from learning self-regulation. “When we first started riding, one of his biggest hurdles were team games: being a good sport, learning something new, and being okay with messing up,” Amanda says. “It was a hard pill to swallow to let another friend take the lead on the trail or win a relay. Those strong emotions were a lot to work through. But this past season, we’d do games and even if he got a little sad, there was no screaming or crying and we’d finish the session strong.” |
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| William adds that while he’s ridden a lot of the horses - Lightning, Annie, Romeo, and Winston - his favorite memory is when Winston finally trotted at a fast pace. “I was laughing and laughing and bouncing!” he says. Amanda agrees that watching the boys trot is extra fun for her, too, because she gets to hear them laugh and watch them push themselves to try something new. “I feel such pride in them, and for how far they’ve come, and what they’re still doing and pursuing and learning,” Amanda says. “What River Valley Riders has done for my kids and others I’ve seen is priceless.” |
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| Introducing Erin Larson,
River Valley Riders' New Development Director! |
| Erin Larson joined us at the beginning of March as RVR's new Director of Development! Bringing with her twenty years of non-profit development and marketing experience, as well as a long history with equine-assisted services, Erin will direct fundraising efforts to ensure RVR's sustainable future. She looks forward to meeting you! |
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| | Horse Love for Life
by Madison Bloomquist |
| When volunteer Jessica Dressel learned about River Valley Riders two years ago as she searched for a great nonprofit worthy of donations for her company’s match program, she wasn’t planning to actually volunteer somewhere. But as a lifelong horse enthusiast who didn’t get to ride as much in her adult life, she immediately was hooked on the mission. “As soon as I walked into the facility for my first training in 2024, I thought, I’m just in love,” she says. “There was a feeling and a vibe—it was just a happy place.” |
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| Jessica has been volunteering as much as possible with RVR ever since—usually on Wednesdays, but she fills in through the week as needed. A former special education teacher, she loves that she can balance her obsession with horses with her passion for helping people with special needs and different abilities. “The actual sense of community here is fabulous, and I’m in awe of the longevity of the students. There are people who have been riding here for 15, 20 years, and they just keep going,” she says. “This is their outlet; this is their thing, and they get so good at it. Everyone from the staff to the students have hearts of gold.” She refuses to pick a favorite memory or moment—there are too many to count—but loves the extra freedom of trail rides. “It’s fun to see the students open up on the open walk, to talk to them about what they see and hear, and give them a little more feeling of independence,” Jessica says. Jessica knows that no matter what’s happened in her day or week, she’ll feel better by the time she leaves RVR, simply because of how happy the riders, staff, and volunteers are. She knows her time is appreciated and used well. “There are no negatives to volunteering here,” she says. “Watching the students light up and learn is so rewarding. It’s such a happy and joyous place.” |
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| | 2026 Volunteer Training
Saturday, April 11, 2026
New Volunteers: The morning Zoom meeting and afternoon hands-on training are mandatory. Volunteers who started in 2025 and did not attend April 2025 training day: The afternoon hands-on training is mandatory. Our season-starting training day on April 11, 2026 will be a great introduction to the fun and responsibility of RVR volunteering. For brand new volunteers the day will begin in your home with a Zoom session from 9:00am to
10:30am. We will be reviewing the 2026 Volunteer Handbook and sharing information about the
most common diagnoses/disabilities of our participants and how to best support them to achieve
their goals. The afternoon in-person training will start at 1:00pm at our Afton lesson site (2007 Neal Avenue
South) for hands-on experience with our horses, ending at 4:30pm. The afternoon in-person
training is mandatory for new volunteers and returning volunteers who started with RVR May-
October 2025 with only the evening training. Lessons are planned to start at our Afton lesson site the week of April 20th for riding and week of April 27th for carriage driving. To RSVP for volunteer training, email [email protected] |
| |  | The 2026 Walk-Wheel and Ride-A-Thon is Coming in June! |
| The 2026 Walk-Wheel and Ride-A-Thon celebrates River Valley Riders' over 26 years of creating a supportive community where people with special needs connect with horses and experience life-changing benefits. This event raises funds to support our programs that help the families of our riders and drivers by keeping our services affordable and accessible. Take the challenge and be the team that raises the most funds! Families, friends, fitness groups, book clubs, classmates and corporate groups can join together to support this grassroots campaign. There are so many amazing personal RVR stories of success — help us share them by inviting friends and family to support this fundraiser! We will also have a special trail-ride fundraising event during lessons in June for our riders and drivers. Volunteers, you are a part of their team, so please join them in fundraising! We also have a virtual fundraising option for you to pick your activity: walking, wheeling, riding or anything you enjoy! More information coming soon! |
| | | Thrivent members! River Valley Riders is approved to receive Thrivent Choice Dollars. You can recommend where some of Thrivent Financial's charitable outreach funds go by visiting the Thrivent Choice website before the 3/31/2026 deadline! |
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| | 2026 Program Update
We are looking forward to another successful 2026 program season. The program is planned to begin on April 20th through November 5th, 2026 providing 26 weeks of riding. Carriage driving will begin April 27th through November 5th, 2026, providing 25 weeks of carriage driving. We will again divide the program into 3 sessions. Spring (9 weeks for riding; 8 weeks for driving); Summer (9 weeks); Fall (8 weeks), with the weeks of Memorial Day, 4th of July and Labor Day off. All lesson opportunities are currently full. Any new openings will be filled from the waiting list. Please visit our website for more information about joining the waiting list: rivervalleyriders.org/participants River Valley Riders does not provide individual helmets for riding or driving. We have a pool of helmets that will be shared by participants. Participants will not have a specific helmet assigned to them. If this is not acceptable to you, please purchase a personal helmet to use for the program. Helmets are required for all riders and drivers. All helmets are required to be ASTM-SEI approved and no more than 5 years old. NO BIKE HELMETS. |
| | Save the Date for the 2026 Round-Up Gala Dinner! |
| The 2026 Round-Up Gala will be held on Saturday, November 21st at a new location, Central Park in Woodbury! The evening includes inspiring videos of our riders and drivers, delicious served dinner catered by the Lake Elmo Inn, live and silent auctions featuring over 100 unique items, live entertainment, and updates on the impact of our programming and future expansion plans with the opportunity to donate to make year-round programming available to our participants! Please support the 2026 Round-Up Gala with a donation to our silent or live auction or event sponsorship! If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact us at [email protected] or call 651-439-2558. |
| | | | We are grateful for the support of our Corporate Sponsors! |
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| Our mission is to create a supportive community where people with special needs connect with horses and experience life-changing benefits. River Valley Riders (EIN# 41-1949447) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with support from individuals, foundations and corporations. All donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law. Financial statements will be provided upon request. |
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| River Valley Riders
8362 Tamarack Village Suite 119-440 Woodbury, Minnesota 55125 |
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