Rosie Goldstein:
Spirit Horse Ranch Rescue and Education Inc. Opened in May 2017

Some history on how we got here.. My life with horses started at a very young age, since my parents had horses before me, I was always around them. I got my first pony when I was 5 years old! My Mom and Dad ran a large horse boarding barn and my Dad also was a hay and feed dealer, later getting involved in Racing Quarter Horses. I grew up on Long Island N.Y. there is a large horse community there, that we were a part of. When I was 8 years old, my Dad was awarded the concession to provide wagon and saddle rides at the brand new Flushing Meadow Park in Corona Queens, close to NYC. This was the former site of the 1964 World's Fair. They built a replica of a working farm, with cows, sheep, goats, chickens, and ducks along with a horse barn filled with ponies to provide wagon and saddle rides to children. For the next 5 years, whenever I wasn't in school, I was there helping. I loved it. Lots of inner-city families attended, as the children waiting online for a ride, I brought a pony to the fence for them to touch, most never saw a live pony, let alone touched one! I never forgot the special moments shared between the ponies and children. After my Dad's time was up there, I remained involved with horses. In 1991, I started my own business, Blue Ribbon Pony Farm Inc. providing pony rides for parties and special events. We traveled all over Long Island. We made many children very happy!

In 2002 we relocated to a small farm in Asheboro North Carolina, I brought my 14 horses and ponies (and 1 donkey) with me. In 2006 I got involved with the Spanish Mustang Registry and purchased my first SMR horse. I fell in love with that breed and I enjoy sharing their heritage and history with anyone who is interested.

As I grew older, thinking about what I want to do when I retire, my love for horses and how they help people came right to mind. The idea was born to create a non-profit to help anyone in our community from children to adults and also to work with those with special needs. In 2015 I started my research and joined PATH – Professional Association for Therapeutic Horsemanship, an organization built to help those who do what I wanted to do.

In May of 2017 we officially opened, providing riding lessons, therapeutic sessions, afterschool and summer programs and more.

In 2023 Kelsey Repsch joined our team, a PATH Certified instructor, with great leadership skills. Kelsey has been around horses since she was a child. She grew up in Philly PA and began volunteering at a therapeutic riding stable in 2003 and quickly fell in love with how the horses helped people with various abilities. She attended college and earned a degree in Equine Business Management as well as her PATH Certification in 2013. She is also certified in equine massage. She has a passion for teaching children and adults in and out of the saddle.