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PATH Intl. Disaster Relief Fund Helps Centers Cool the Fires

Denver— According to the National Interagency Fire Center, 37 large fires have burned more than 292,000 acres in nine states. And this is only the beginning of wild fire season. Flooding threatens even more states from tropical storms and hurricanes.

With the knowledge of these disasters comes the fear of losing property and, even worse, the possibility of losing lives. Evacuations of humans and horses are heartbreaking yet necessary. Many return to homes and barns destroyed, shells of the dreams and activities that took place there. How to rebuild and where to start can be enormous and almost unanswerable questions.

The PATH Intl. Disaster Relief Fund was created in 2005 to help centers affected by such disasters. The purpose of the fund is to assist PATH Intl. Member Centers with an immediate need in funding expenses not normally covered by operating insurance after natural or man-made catastrophic disasters. Since its inception, PATH Intl. has given thousands of dollars to help these centers with outstanding needs.

While it is still too early to tell how much damage wild fires and floods have done to PATH Intl. Member Centers, it is never too early to help. Your donations to the PATH Intl. Disaster Relief Fund will help centers rebuild. Visit www.pathintl.org and click Donate Now at the top.

Questions? Email Cher Smith at . Thank you for your generosity.

About PATH Intl.:

The Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International® (PATH Intl.), formed in 1969, advances professional equine-assisted services (EAS) by empowering its members, credentialed professionals, partners and the public through rigorously developed standards, credentials and education that recognize the power of the equine-human relationship. At 721 member centers, more than 71,000 children and adults with special needs, including 8,000 veterans, may find improved health, wellness, a sense of pride, independence and fun through involvement with horses. PATH Intl. members, credentialed professionals and member centers uphold the PATH Intl. Standards, developed and adopted by the PATH Intl. membership, to ensure centers and professionals follow procedures essential to providing safe, humane, gold-standard-quality EAS programming to the public, in the broad areas of horsemanship, therapy and learning. Among its multiple EAS certification programs, PATH Intl. proudly offers the Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor certification (the PATH Intl. CTRI®); the first and only independently accredited certification program in EAS.