By Nikki Thomas and Emma Dalton, staff writers
Ethan Williams has a big dream. With a little help from friends and family, it just might come true.
Recently, Indian Trail held a benefit basketball game for its fellow student Williams. Tremper and Indian Trail high schools both participated in the fundraiser. Each school’s student section wore T-shirts with corresponding slogans which read “Hawk Strong, Ethan Strong” and “Trojan Strong, Ethan Strong.” During halftime of the varsity boys game, the two rival student sections came together for a cheer, chanting back “How Strong?” “Ethan Strong.” The game overall raised about $4,450 which went towards Ethan’s dream of opening a therapeutic horse farm, a dream that is moving closer and closer to becoming a reality.
Williams has cerebral palsy which requires him to have occasional hospital visits where he receives his regular course of treatment. Not too long after his first surgery, he was rushed into two more emergency surgeries. The doctors knew they would give it their all, but nothing was guaranteed. Williams recovered, although he had to stay in the hospital recuperating for a long while.
Williams’ therapeutic horse farm would serve kids with special needs. Therapeutic farms can do an amazing job of helping special needs kids to improve muscle tone, bal- ance, posture, motor coordination, concentration, self-confidence, and self-esteem by having the children work directly with horses. His parents wanted to make this dream become a reality, so they bought a farm and horses to begin this journey. The family now owns six horses; four are Gypsy Vanners, one is a mini horse, and one is a Friesian. Justice, one of the gypsies, is Ethan’s own personal horse.
Alexis Oilar, an Indian Trail senior, recently began volunteering at the farm, working with the horses. So far, she has given more than 100 hours to training Williams’ horses.
“When I heard that Ethan and his family had been spending a lot of time at the hospital and couldn’t be at home with their horses, I offered their family my assistance,” said Oilar. “I love horses and I really wanted to take less stress off the family and give them one less thing to think about.”
Before Oilar began training the horses, only one was trained well enough to be ridden. Now, three out of the six she has been working with are comfortable with riders in the saddle. She started off by teaching the horses cues and vocal commands and then worked her way to ride them.
“My goal for these young horses is to have them trained well enough so that they can be used as therapy horses. These horses are so much fun to work with because they are so smart and beautiful,” Oilar said.
“I can’t wait for Ethan and other special needs kids to be able to ride the three other Gypsy Vanners,” she said.
As Ethan was in the hospital, a group of 20 volunteers gathered at the family’s barn. They decorated the barn with lights for the holiday season, and assisted in cleaning the horses.
Thankfully, Ethan is now well and back at school.
“He’s doing great and he’s fully back to normal. He enjoyed all the attention and love from fellow classmates,” said Trisha Franke, Ethan’s friend.