Center Membership Renewal Postcard
All center members should have received a postcard reminder in the mail with the new dues amounts indicated. This postcard is not intended to be a formal invoice. If mailing in a check payment to PATH Intl., please send in the renewal booklet with your check, not just the postcard. Your renewal is not complete until all required information is received.

Combined Federal Campaign
PATH Intl. is once again participating in the Combined Federal Campaign. If you are a federal employee or member of the military interested in donating to PATH Intl., give through your paycheck by selecting PATH Intl. (CFC #23051) as your charity of choice.

Correction
In the last PATH Intl. eNews, it was stated that Sandy Webster, the PATH Intl. James Brady Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, was with Giant Steps in California. Sandy is not currently with Giant Steps and has her own consulting company, Gaits of Change. We apologize for the confusion.

holiday greens

Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International

December 18, 2012

Make a Difference Today

You can make a difference today! Please donate to PATH Intl. Every $1 you donate today goes directly toward helping:
* Certify professionals
* Accredit centers
* Partner with higher education institutions to build the future of the industry
* Educate the public on the benefits of equine-assisted activities and therapies (EAAT)

Please consider PATH Intl. in your end-of-year giving, whether by check, stock or online. If you have any questions about donating to PATH Intl., please email Megan or call (303) 452-1212, ext. 107. Thank you!

PATH Intl. honors the memory of the 20 children and the six adults killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Our thoughts are with the families and the community as well as the 18 PATH Intl. centers that serve the state of Connecticut.

Animal Assisted Therapy Services, West Haven, CT
Camp Care Riding Program, Columbia, CT
Ellington Therapy Riding Center Inc., Ellington, CT
Hidden Acres Therapeutic Riding Center LLC, Naugatuck, CT
High Hopes Therapeutic Riding, Inc., Old Lyme, CT
Hilltop Therapeutic Riding Program, Inc., Killingworth, CT
Horses Healing Humans, Inc., Voluntown, CT
Little Britches Therapeutic Riding, Roxbury, CT
Manes & Motions Therapeutic Riding Center, Middletown, CT
May Day's Place, Roxbury, CT
New Canaan Mounted Troop Therapeutic Riding Program, New Canaan, CT
Newberry Farm L.L.C., Columbia, CT
Ray of Light Farm, Inc., East Haddam, CT
Red-Tar Spirit Horse Therapy Riding Center Inc., Stafford Springs, CT
Riverview Farm, Uncasville, CT
Shepard Meadows Therapeutic Riding Center, Bristol, CT
The Learning Clinic Inc., Brooklyn, CT
We Will Ride Therapeutic Riding, Inc., Ridgefield, CT

Equus Foundation Hall of Fame for Horses

The Equus Foundation, a PATH Intl. sponsor, is establishing a hall of fame for horses to share stories of their amazing athletic and humanitarian accomplishments. The Equus Foundation is seeking nominees of horses that have had or are having a life-changing impact in the field of equine assisted activities and therapies or other public service areas. Candidates for consideration also include horses that have excelled or are excelling in sport or public service after overcoming significant hardship.

The nomination deadline is January 15, 2013. Click here for information on signing up and submitting a nomination.

10% Off All Items in the PATH Intl. Pro Shop

If you've already made your list and are checking it twice, it doesn't even matter if you've been naughty or nice! Because for everybody, all items in the PATH Intl. Pro Shop have been discounted by 10% for the month of December! All items can be custom embroidered with the PATH Intl. logo of your choice - Certified Instructor, PATH International Equine Services for Heroes, Premier Accredited Center, etc., and in most case your name! The prices shown online reflects the discounted amount. While orders can no longer be guaranteed for Christmas delivery, the discount still applies. Happy shopping!

Congratulations to Arlene Alen
Congratulations to PATH Intl. Board of Trustees member Arlene Alen, who was voted to fill a seat on the Dewey-Humboldt, Arizona, council earlier in December. The appointment will run for six months. Click here to read the full story.

Give a Donation in Honor or in Memory

If you need a quick last-minute gift for the holidays, consider giving a donation in honor of a loved one. The PATH Intl. In Memory webpage is dedicated to honor and memorialize special people and horses. A $50 donation allows the donor to post up to 50 words and an image of the honoree; $25 is for a words-only post.

If you donate by noon MST on Friday, December 21, PATH Intl. guarantees your post will be up by Christmas day. Questions? Contact Megan at (303) 452-1212, ext. 107.

Thank you and happy holidays!

PATH Intl. and American Paint Horse Foundation Team Up to Provide Scholarships

PATH Intl. and the American Paint Horse Foundation (APHF) have forged an innovative partnership designed to benefit those who wish to further their education and will provide scholarship assistance to potential instructors of therapeutic riding beginning January 1 2013. While open to anyone with skills in equine management, horsemanship, instruction, teaching methods, and disabilities, preference for scholarships will be awarded to medical professionals.

Click here for applications for the scholarship. Applications should be postmarked by March 1, 2013, and scholarship recipients will be notified by April 1, 2013.

Possible Government Cap on Charitable Donation Deductions

In recent talks to reduce the federal deficit and avert the year-end "fiscal cliff," top White House aides are pressing nonprofit groups to line up behind the president's plan to raise income tax rates for upper-end taxpayers and to limit the charitable deduction for high-income earners by placing a cap on total itemized deductions. This could impact charities that often depend on the contributions of wealthy donors to keep their doors open and services available, and damage their ability to fund-raise. Read the Washington Post article here.

You can lobby your government representatives to protect the charitable giving incentive and oppose any proposal to reduce or cap the tax value of charitable contributions. Click here to download a sample of a letter you can tailor for you or your center's use and mail or email it to your government representatives. Click here to find your representatives.

Renew Your Center Membership by December 31

Thank you for your commitment to safety, ethical practices and professionalism in equine-assisted activities and therapies. To ensure that PATH Intl. continues to provide your center with premium education and to maintain uninterrupted access to the wealth of benefits available to PATH Intl. centers, please renew your center membership by December 31.

Online center renewal is available. Online registration makes it especially easy to renew your registration before it expires. With the elimination of paper, you'll end any worry about losing your form on the desk or in the mail.

Click here to renew online. NOTE: The center's primary contact or executive director must be logged in to their personal account in order to renew online.

If you need to update the primary contact for your center, please send in a center change notification form or a premier accredited center change notification form.

Of course if you prefer to mail a hard copy renewal, that is still an option. Download and complete the Center Renewal Booklet and renewal invoice from the PATH Intl. website, and mail it in.

Click here to download the Center Renewal Booklet.

Centers that prefer to pay by check may complete the Center Renewal booklet online and mail a check for center membership dues.

For more information about renewing your center membership, please visit our FAQ page.

PATH Intl. Welcomes New Centers

PATH Intl. welcomes these centers that joined PATH Intl. in November 2012. If you want information on center membership, contact Karen Province.

Healing Horses & Armed Forces, Tehachapi, CA

Lehigh Equestrian Academy Project - L.E.A.P., Center Valley, PA

RideAbility Therapeutic Riding Center Inc., Clover, SC

EQUIPHORIA, La Canourgue, France

How to Run a Successful EAAT Program Highlighted in Magazine Article
PATH Intl. CEO Kay Marsh Green was recently interviewed and mentioned in an article in Stable Management.com. "The Horse as Healer" by Lisa Derby Oden discusses some of the qualities necessary to run a successful equine-assisted activities and therapies program and gives an overview of how PATH Intl. has grown. Click here to read the article.

EAAT Mentioned in USEF's Equestrian Magazine

The Center for Therapeutic Riding of the East End, a PATH Intl. Premier Accredited Center in Bridgehampton, NY, and CTREE's Mosely were featured in an interview with Kelly Killoren Bensimon in the November issue of Equestrian Magazine, the publication of the United States Equestrian Federation, about Kelly's experiences as an equestrian. Click here to read the story. Our favorite quote from Kelly came when she was asked if she had any advice for first-time riders. "The only advice I can give is to beware," she said, "for the sport is so wonderful and ever-changing that all you will want to do is ride."

PATH Intl. Participation Requested in Career Hiring Survey

Mindy Young, a senior at Texas A&M University majoring in Agricultural Leadership and Development, is conducting a survey of companies and organizations within the equine industry to better understand what they are looking for when hiring a college graduate. PATH Intl.'s participation is significantly valued.

Click here to take the survey. It should take no longer than 15 minutes.

Please use identification number 1011.

PATH Intl. Events Calendar

Unless otherwise noted, contact Denise Fager at (800) 369-7433, ext. 114, with questions. All dates are subject to change. To register for an event, please contact the host site directly. You can locate its contact information under Find a Center on the PATH Intl. home page or on the PATH Intl. events calendar.

PATH Intl. Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning Workshop and Practical Skills Testing
January 2-6, 2013
Horses Help in Phoenix, AZ

February 14-17, 2013
Marion Therapeutic Riding Association in Ocala, FL

October 23-26, 2013
Hearts and Horses, Inc., in Loveland, CO

PATH Intl. Driving Workshop and Certification combination event
Workshop is held the first 2-1/2 days, certification held the last 2-1/2 days. Specific schedule sent by host site.
July 2-6, 2013
BraveHearts at the Bergmann Centre in Poplar Grove, IL

October 15-19, 2013
Horse Power at Touchstone Farm in Temple, NH

PATH Intl. Advanced Certification Event
February 19-20, 2013
Good Hope Equestrian Center, Inc. in Miami, FL

March 14-16, 2013
Equest in Wylie, TX

March 22-24, 2013
Horses Help in Phoenix, AZ

May 28-30, 2013
High Hopes Therapeutic Riding in Old Lyme, CT

PATH Intl. Vaulting Workshop/Certification Event

None scheduled at this time.

PATH Intl. Mentor Training

February 9-10, 2013
St. Andrews Ride Like A Knight in Laurinburg, NC

Please visit the PATH Intl. events calendar for a list of 2012 Registered On-Site Workshops and Certifications.

Please direct correspondence about this newsletter to PATH Intl. eNews coordinator. PATH Intl. eNews is a benefit of Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International membership. No portion of this publication may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, scanned or electronic process without written permission from PATH Intl. PATH Intl. reserves the right to reject, accept and edit submitted material. PATH Intl. eNews is intended as an information exchange and an opportunity for communication for members in the field of equine assisted activities. The opinions, practices or products presented in PATH Intl. eNews do not necessarily reflect PATH Intl. policy, imply PATH Intl. endorsement or comply with PATH Intl. standards.