CYCLING WITHOUT AGE – LITTLETON

 

By Barb and Nate Lotze

 

Cycling Without Age – Littleton (CWA) is a nonprofit organization that uses trishaws — imagine a bicycle in back, a carriage in front — to provide joy, mobility, and connection for seniors in our area. RiverPointe Senior Living is the beginning and ending point for the trishaw rides, which travel along the scenic South Platte River through the beautiful Hudson Gardens, to Nixon’s outdoor Café, where you can get a bite to eat, and on to the flood memorial for a quick history lesson. Some rides even travel to the top of the Chatfield Reservoir Dam, allowing passengers to enjoy an exquisite view of mountains, the lake, and people. Along the way, passengers bond with their volunteer pilots, who enjoy the rides just as much.

 

Bill Nagel, Phil Cernanec and Barb Lotze co-founded CWA in 2019 in partnership with Visiting Angels of Littleton, providing essential care services to those in need. Barb, who is Director of Business Development at Aviant Health Care, saw a need to give seniors and those unable to ride a bike a chance to experience nature and the feeling of wind in their hair. Partnering with RiverPointe Senior Living gives quick access to the South Platte River trail, along which are multiple places to tour.

  

CWA – Littleton invites you to come and ride with them as a passenger (call Jinny at 414-861-4877) or volunteer (call Barb at 720-231-6248).

 

CWA – Littleton is a 501(c)(3) and does not take tips, but donations are welcome through www.charity.gofundme.com/cwalittleton.

 

ZUMA'S RESCUE RANCH

 

By JJ Johnson

 

Named a 2020 Top-Rated Nonprofit, Zuma’s Rescue Ranch is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization located in rural Douglas County that has been rescuing horses and other farm animals and pairing them up with humans for therapy sessions to build trust since 2004. Named in honor of the first horse our founders Jodi and Paul Messenich purchased together in the mid-'90s, Zuma was a bright spirit – a truly once-in-a-lifetime horse who forever changed the hearts and minds of our founders. Our mission honors Zuma’s legacy each day, stating: “Through compassion-based education and animal rescue, we are changing the perception of how horses are trained and animals are treated while healing humans through our animal-assisted learning programs.” 

 

Zuma’s Equine Assisted Learning (ZEAL) program serves children, teens, and adults struggling with behavioral and mental health issues. Our programming can often succeed when conventional therapy fails to have an impact. Zuma's aligns with various other organizations, foster homes, and schools to identify individuals who could benefit from animal-assisted therapy. Our programming is operated by both licensed equine therapists and licensed clinical social workers, and supported by various horse professionals, enthusiasts, and volunteers. Our aim is to provide a safe environment that is conducive to the partnering of human and horse on a path toward mutual healing.

 

In addition to our variety of mental health opportunities, Zuma’s also offers English riding lessons and equine education classes – because we believe that all riders should be partners, not passengers. With over 60 rescued animals living at the ranch, Zuma’s thrives on inspiration from its ever-growing volunteer program. Volunteers support our mission by completing barn chores, feeding and grooming the herd, working at our fundraisers, and becoming community ambassadors.

 

To find out how to join any of our programs, please email our Program Director,

JJ Johnson, at jj@zumasrescueranch.com.

 

THE DIAMOND PLACE INC.

 

By Tiffany Sharp

Domestic violence (DV) is not a topic we typically discuss in our day-to-day conversations. In fact, women who have been impacted by DV are often seen as damsels, and, underneath our breath, though we’d never admit it, we often wonder how could they let this happen to them? We talk about women’s empowerment, but what really happens after a woman has the courage to leave? Sadly, as it stands today, there is a gross shortage of beds, and if you can get one, you have 30 to 45 days to heal emotional and physical wounds, get a job, find housing, create a budget and be self-sustainable to make room for the next woman.

 

Which is why Tiffany Sharp created The Diamond Place Inc., a start-up nonprofit social service agency in Colorado. The Diamond Place Inc. has a futuristic view on how women should be treated after being traumatized. Tiffany’s mission is to help restore hope in women, to work towards starting a better life, free from abuse and trauma. The organization is based off Maslow’s Theory of Needs, by first addressing the fundamental needs of physiological and safety. After these basic needs have been met, then the healing can begin.

 

The Diamond Place Inc. provides women with counseling, classes and job training, which allows them to regain their independence. Most women who experience trauma are in flight or fight mode, making it impossible to think or be able to breathe; Tiffany has experienced this firsthand. Their model is evidence-based, focusing on the trauma, not continuing to re-victimize. Their main goal is to lift a woman’s personal value, confidence and dignity, by improving her self-worth through personal and business skills that she needs to succeed.  They want to refine as many diamonds in the rough as they can! Visit https://thediamondplace.org/ for more information.