Therapeutic Riding Center of Huntington Beach

Therapeutic Riding Center of Huntington Beach (TRCHB) was founded in 1990 to address a need for equine-assisted services for several disabled residents of Orange County. Starting with one horse, a group of volunteers dedicated themselves to utilizing horses and riding to help people with disabilities. Our mission is to empower people with physical and developmental challenges to discover their greatest strengths and gain a sense of self-confidence and self-reliance, through the special relationship with a horse. In pursuit of this mission, in 1992, we were certified through the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association, now known as the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International (PATH), a voluntary, peer-reviewed accreditation process confirming that TRCHB demonstrates excellence in adaptive riding, incorporates best-practices, and maintains proper safety standards. In 1992, TRCHB officially became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Since then, we have provided our services in a private arena at the Huntington Central Park Equestrian Center, serving children and adults from throughout Orange and Los Angeles County six days per week. Today, we continue to provide low-cost adaptive riding services to children, youth, and adults with a variety of physical and developmental challenges, including autism, muscular and skeletal diseases and disorders, learning disabilities, and those with vision impairments and who are deaf or hard of hearing. Through our riding sessions, we help our clients develop a “spirit that overcomes their disability.” As we look toward the future, TRCHB is focused on building our capacity to meet the growing demand for our services. While the horse has long been considered to have value, its use in occupational and physical therapy continues to grow.