I write my reports late, when all of the humans and critters I reside with are fast asleep for the night. There is a sweet peace floating softly through the air that inspires me to recall the wonder and miracles of last month. This evening is extra warm and as I look out of the window, I can still see soft, shadowy shapes of trees in the dimming light of nightfall. I am surrounded by tired, happy dogs lightly snoring at my feet. All is well at Raven Rock.
I am so very proud to announce that one of our students, Gabe, sold an UNBELIEVABLE amount of candy and won, no…DOMINATED our candy sale! We collected $2800 total and he collected about $1200 of that! This was by far our most successful candy sale-ever. Second place went to Avery with an amazing $750 collection. I certainly need these two kids on our marketing team! Third place went to Rubie, who collected a respectable $85. Congratulations to all the kids who participated to help support their beloved horses. This work of love and pride in their four-footed friends is inspirational to all. Thanks to everyone who sold candy for Raven Rock!
Gabe and Rocky
Our 8th Annual dinner and auction event, Miracles Happen, is coming up October 12, 2019 at Sahalee Country Club. Get your table early- this is a beautiful venue and we are expecting a full house! More details will follow in future RR Reports as well as on our website.
Signup here: https://events.readysetauction.com/ravenrockranch/miracleshappen
We had our First Annual Raven Rock Yacht Club aboard Bucket List, a gorgeous 68-foot yacht, fully catered, fully-stocked bar and plenty of fun, thanks to Jeff Kirby, who donated this fabulous cruise AND AGREED TO OFFER THIS UNBELIEVABLE CRUISE for our auction this year! DON’T MISS YOUR CHANCE to win one of the few remaining spots on next year’s cruise. Several Raven Rock Yacht clubbers signed up again for next year!
We got our round pen covered in May! We have been saving up for this so that we could increase our clients by 25%. What a blessing! We use it every day and it is the best!Thank you to Baxter Family Trust and Liberty Road Foundation, as it is the donations from these two Funders that made this dream come true! Here is the wonderful structure that is getting lots of use.
We have increased our Operating Budget this year because now that we have the facility to add many more kids, we need the resource to facilitate them. I am always looking for someone with passion for our hurting kids to take on the challenge and responsibility of Equine Facilitator.
Once again this year, Cadman Concrete Company partnered with Raven Rock and had one of their best, most successful golf tournaments. It was held June 26 at Echo Falls Golf Club. The golfers were construction companies’ owners and employees who were clients of Cadman. The generous company hosted 130 golfers for a round of golf and a great lunch, with prizes and gifts. Truly a fun day! The golfers responded by an overwhelming generosity to RRR. During the event, the golfers donated $10,500 to Raven Rock and Cadman MATCHED that! They truly understood the mission and success of Raven Rock and gave with their hearts. It humbles me to know that these great guys heard my plea for our kids and showed it with their resources. A GIANT Thank You to Cadman and all of the wonderful men and women who gave!
I am so proud this June as we celebrated the High School graduation of many of our Raven Rock kids. Some of these teens refused to even attend school when they first came to Raven Rock. But they have graduated and many are going on to college. This is a miracle of the first degree. It is not that they were not smart enough- many are above average kids. But they felt dis-connected and isolated from their peers and family due to some kind of trauma.
One such young lady I’ll call Ann, began life as an unwanted, unplanned child born into a single-parent household. Her mother scrambled to find her own identity and when she did, it didn’t include her daughter. She dropped her off at her Gramma’s house…permanently. Ann was about 9 years old when her mom had a new family that didn’t include her. Though her Gramma was wonderful and filled in so many voids that needed filling, Ann had fears and abandonment issues that eroded her self-image. She felt worthless and troubled. The other kids at school could see it in her and bullied her terribly. Gramma was desperate for an answer to help this innocent girl become a healed, functioning person. So Gramma found Raven Rock and Ann began her journey of self-discovery and confidence building.
It took just over a year until she felt confident enough to accept a scholarship to Warm Beach Equestrian camp. With much trepidation, she visited the camp before attending but found it as warm and welcoming as it could be. After 1 week, she never wanted to leave! The following year, she applied for and was accepted for “Wrangler in Training” Ann spent 5 glorious weeks at the very same camp that she was terrified to go to for even 1 overnight stay the preceding year.
Her life’s dream is to work on a ranch with horses. She is also looking into shadowing a vet for a day to see if vet tech would be something she would enjoy. But the important thing is she’s found her way. She has confidence and direction- she knows who she is. After a rough start in life, she has turned it around. With a teen suicide rate climbing an astounding 21% in just one year, (NBC news) finding her identity and her way is a colossal success story. We are so proud of our graduates and know that they will be successful in the future.
So much is happening at Raven Rock and I sincerely thank all of you who participate- by giving of your time, resources and prayers. We work hard here, and know for a fact we couldn’t do it without you. The Raven Rock Family is an unbeatable team!
Gratitude and blessings,
Sandy
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