CHATSWORTH : Hamblin Starts Therapeutic Riding Charity

Chatsworth resident Gloria Hamblin has started a new therapeutic horseback-riding charity in the wake of her departure from another Chatsworth riding group, the Institute of Equestrian Therapy, which is under investigation by the state attorney general.

Hamblin, who was one of two founders of the Institute of Equestrian Therapy, was fired after raising questions about alleged mismanagement of the institute. Her queries prompted the attorney general’s investigation. Institute officials deny any wrongdoing, and are still offering classes in the area.

Hamblin’s new group is called Ride On Therapeutic Horsemanship, a shoestring operation made possible by the donation of four docile horses and donated space at a Chatsworth stable.

After more than 20 years of teaching riding to disabled riders in the area, Hamblin has been able to quickly fill two days a week of classes with former students, and she said she is looking for more horses so that those on a waiting list can take part.

Last week, she started giving Ride On’s first lessons with the help of 10 volunteers. Her students included Lloyd Anderson, who lost motor skills and suffers other side effects as a result of a head injury he sustained in a traffic accident eight years ago.

Physical therapy is no easy matter for someone like Lloyd, a big-boned 23-year-old who towers over his parents, said Nancy Anderson, Lloyd’s mother. She said she has strained her own arms trying to help Lloyd regain the use of his limbs, and was grateful to watch from the sidelines Thursday as Shotgun, a slow-moving, elderly chestnut horse, took over the job.

As a result of head injuries, Lloyd and one classmate, Dawn Rader, 27, have a tendency to cross one leg in front of the other as they walk. Horseback riding forces their legs apart, explained Norman Anderson, Lloyd’s father.

“A therapist can’t do it as well as this,” Nancy Anderson said. “Many people don’t understand. It’s not just something fun to do. It does so many things.”

Three years ago, when he began riding, Lloyd couldn’t get out of a wheelchair or sit up by himself in the saddle, Nancy Anderson said. Today, he walks with the aid of a walker, and can guide the horse on his own.

“At first it was difficult,” Lloyd said. “I’m developing balance a little at a time. I see improvement a little at a time.”

For Hamblin, the future of the organization is in doubt. She faces losing the use of the borrowed Chatsworth property at the end of the month, and says she needs more funds--and older, docile horses--to expand the classes.

Meanwhile, families such as the Andersons are getting what they can from the new charity. Riding, said Nancy, “gives Lloyd a freedom he doesn’t have. It gives him command.”