Julianne Reilly, New Canaan High School in New Canaan

[Note: This is not the article where you should vote for this contestant. This is essayist No. 7, so in the voting article, which is here, just post a comment that says ‘7' to vote for this student. Voting is limited to one person per finalist per day, and closes at 11:59 p.m. on May 18. The finalist essay follows.] 

My passion for horses began early on. My mother rode for years as a child and ended up passing the bug along to me. 

On my sixth birthday, I was granted my wish. Since then, I have ridden for 10 years and have come to love horses and the lessons they teach by having to solely care for them. In trying to combine my love for horses and my love for helping others, I stumbled upon Super Troopers. 

So, to me, volunteering is waking up early Sunday morning, right as the sun comes up and walking into my barn, New Canaan Mounted Troop. There, I am able to work with both animals and people that I love and admire through their therapeutic riding program called Super Troopers.

During the weekly three hour sessions, impaired children flock to the barn to ride the horses allowing them to be tested in different physical and mental situations than traditional therapies offer. 

My usual role is a “side walker” for a 13 year old girl named Emma. When she’s on the ground, she's usually very quiet and doesn’t like to talk to people whom she doesn’t feel comfortable around. In addition to her social issues, she has other motor skill problems that make walking hard especially when her joints become stiff in the winter. However, once she steps foot on her usual mount named CJ, a docile chestnut thoroughbred, her demeanor becomes goofy and so full of life. 

She loves every moment she has on this horse and the time that she has with me and the other two girls that are part of what she calls, “Team CJ.” I cherish every moment I see her so happy because I know that is rare. By laughing at all of her silly jokes, whether it’s her connecting the visual of a plastic skull to what I will eventually look like in 100 years, or her mimicking the pose I make in my Facebook profile pictures, I find myself connecting with her more deeply than I ever would have otherwise. 

I deeply thank this organization for this opportunity because honestly, she’s someone that’s shaped my life for the better.

Ultimately, during the time I’ve dedicated to this program, I’ve realized that I am enhancing growth in another’s ability. This experience affords these kids the opportunity to feel in control of something bigger than themselves, which is rather rare in their daytoday life. Furthermore, I realize that in my efforts to improve the quality of other’s lives, I have also improved my own. Having seen the change that this therapy makes possible for these kids, it is nothing short of a miracle. 

Volunteering for me is working with animals that I love and shining the light and love that they’ve given me on someone else. Someone who is less fortunate. Someone very special.