“My son Matthew suffers from Autism Spectrum Disorder, mild intellectual disability, OCD, ADHD, Depression & PTSD. Matthew has been riding at Ivy Hill almost 8 years. He has competed in many home horse shows as well as the Handicapped Rider Division of Devon (Thorncroft) & has qualified for Special Olympics summer games at Penn State & has won many ribbons & medals. Before joining Ivy Hill, Matthew was very shy, introverted, poor posture & poor eye contact. Matthew met his first horse Sonny who he immediately fell in love with. Sonny carried Matthew through many shows & awards. Sonny has since retired so now Declan, Blue, Flash & the rest of the amazing horses of Ivy Hill has given him so much love, patience & understanding. Ivy Hill has given me my gentle, loving, kind, compassionate son back. His posture, eye contact & social skills have blossomed. Matthew had a very devastating life event, not related to Ivy Hill about 2 years ago. This event has knocked him down but with the love & support of the horses, instructors, volunteers, board of directors & owners he is starting to get back to himself. We can’t imagine life without Ivy Hill & we are very proud to be part of the wonderful Ivy Hill family. In addition to being this wonderful young man’s mother I am also a volunteer. I see first hand how these horses & programs change children’s lives for the better.”