Back in the saddle

Mary A. Castillo

When Mary Ann Ingle was diagnosed with lupus at 19, she was told her

career as a steeple jumper was over. Brokenhearted, but not broken, Ingle

never accepted that her life with horses had come to an end.

Nearly 20 years later, she found the opportunity to work with them

again as a volunteer at the Therapeutic Riding Center. Since August, the

37-year-old’s life has a new focus.

“When you get the horse bug, you get it bad,” Ingle said as she drew a

brush over Rhythm, one of the center’s training horses. “I knew one day

that I was going to get back into horses.”

Ingle said the center’s motto, “the spirit that overcomes

disabilities,” not only applied to the physically disabled children they

work with, but also to her.

“As I work with the students, I see a lot of progress in their muscle

coordination and their self-confidence,” she said. “It’s a big reward to

be part of that.”

Three days a week, Ingle rides the bus from her Long Beach home to the

Huntington Beach Equestrian Center. Before the students arrive, Ingle and

others groom, tack and lead the horses into the ring. During classes, she

works one-on-one with students, ensuring that they are safely seated in

the saddle as they follow the trainer’s instructions.

Eventually she would like to be certified as a trainer with the North

American Riding for the Handicapped Assn., a requirement for all trainers

who work with the center. But for now, she feels that volunteering is

enough.

“It has made such an impact on my life,” she said. “I finally feel

like I can do something for others because for so many years, family and

friends did so much for me.”

* MARY A. CASTILLO is a news assistant with Times Community News. She

can be reached at (714) 965-7177 or by e-mail at o7

mary.castillo@latimes.com

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