/ 202 PAY IT FORWARD / community service
Healing the Heart of a Child...
Through the Connection of a Horse
“There is something about the outside of a
horse that is good for the inside of a man.”
—Winston Churchill
by Jessica Parsons
54
S
et against the backdrop of the
glorious Superstition Mountains,
down a small Apache Junction road
called Sixshooter, you’ll find Grace Falls
Farm—a charity with a mission to “rescue
the horse, mentor the child and heal the
hearts of both.”
On this sunny Saturday in August, you
can hear the voices and laughter of children
coming from a backyard. Water and soap is
splashed around, as kids of all ages stomp
through mud in their winter, rubber boots.
Their job, on this day, is to bathe 24-yearold horse named Scarlett, a bay mare.
“Scarlett is easy going with the kids,”
says Aly Pflugfelder. “In fact, she does
better when the kids are around, giving
her attention.” While a nanny goat hides
from the water, Chip, a mini chocolate
gelding seems content to be next.
As I soak in the sights and smells of
this outdoor, backyard stable, I see parents
smiling, hugging and kissing their children.
It’s clear this is a special place. “When the
kids come around, the horses tend to forget
that they hurt, and they perform like they
did when they were young.”
202 magazine / october 2013 / 202magazine.com
This 501(c)(3) non-profit operates out
of the home of Aly and James Pflugfelder,
who founded the organization in April
of 2004, with the purchase of their first
horse. “We have an adopted daughter who
has autism, and we noticed that when
we put her on a horse, she’d wake up and
come out of this stupor that she lives in,”
says Aly. “It was an incredible thing. We
love to be healed of our imperfections
through animals.”
The Pflugfelder’s couldn’t deny
this powerful connection and became
determined to not only rescue orphaned
horses, but share the experience between
horse and child with other Valley families
struggling with at-risk children. “It’s an
amazing connection,” says Aly. “It’s hard
to explain what happens, but it’s like the
spirit of the human and the spirit of the
horse have an agreement, that if you take
care of me, I will take care of you. That’s
how the bond begins. A horse becomes
very attached to their human, it’s loyalty.”
Today, Grace Falls Farm is home to
12 horses, including 30-year-old Harpo,
a mini, a nanny goat and chickens—