Last weeks program was provided by Rotarian Brandon Snyder.  Brandon’s guest speaker was Lisa Michaelangelo.  Lisa is the founder and director of Emerald M. Therapeutic Riding Center. Lisa graduated from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA in 1998 with her Bachelors degree of Health Sciences and a Masters degree of Physical Therapy. She has practiced here in Florida for almost 19 years in a variety of settings.  In 2014, with the support of her husband and daughters, she decided to combine her passion for physical therapy with her love of horses.  The mission at Emerald M Therapeutic Riding Center is Hope, Renewal, and Growth- the meaning of the emerald gem stone. Through the use of equine assisted therapies, we strive to bring hope into the lives of the people we serve, provide them with a renewed sense of self, and give them an opportunity for growth.  The Center was established in 2014 on 5 acres in Dade City and has since moved to 20 acres in Brooksville on 20 acres of land and became an official 501(c)3, non-profit in 2016.  There are three main programs at the Center:  Hippotherapy - is a strategy used by Physical, Occupational and/or Speech Therapists to utilize the movement of the horse along with traditional therapeutic techniques to achieve the desired motor and sensory outcomes of the participant. The horse provides multidimensional movement and multisensory input in an organized fashion which can help to improve a variety of deficits.  Therapeutic riding - is a recreational form of therapy that can be taught by a non-therapist instructor.  The focus is on developing horsemanship skills on and off the saddle.  Just as in hippotherapy, therapeutic riding can improve sensory and motor skills that carryover into improving balance, coordination, strength, and posture.  Many of our participants have graduated from hippotherapy and moved on to therapeutic riding.  P.E.A.C.E. is powerful equine assisted counseling experience for veterans suffering from PTSD and other emotional trauma experiences.  Lisa showed us two very powerful videos of success stories…Brianna, who is suffering with Cerebral palsy and Franco, a combat veteran dealing with PTSD…their relationships with the horses and their renewed sense of self is incredible.  The Center operates on donations and volunteers.  They are open Monday through Friday from 10:00am to 6:00pm.  In the past 16 months they have worked with 130 veterans and have held over 500 therapy sessions.  If you can donate your time or financial resources it would be greatly appreciated with this great organization that is making a difference in peoples lives.  -provided by Mike Arndt