Restore & Renew Counseling-Remus Location

05/03/2026

at every age! Life changes as we grow older can impact well-being—but support is always available. Learn how to care for yourself or a loved one and find help: samhsa.gov/communities/older-adults

05/03/2026

May is Mental Health Awareness Month.

This is a great time to create a self-care plan or update an old plan.

What do you do to relax? To calm down rush of emotions when you are feeling stressed or overwhelmed? What do you do when you are feeling down or alone?

It’s also a great time to check in on your loved ones. Reach out and see how they are doing. Also reach out and let someone know if you aren’t doing okay.

It’s okay to not be okay, but you don’t have to do it alone.

05/03/2026

📣 Community Announcement 📣

The park gates are officially opened. Please enjoy the season.
The DDA is proud of what we’ve been able to bring to the park for our community.

05/02/2026

9 days ago, we opened a door and invited you into the heart of Journey Equus.

Since then, you’ve learned what equine assisted learning really is — and what it isn’t. You’ve learned why horses heal, how their heartbeat can steady ours, and what a session actually feels like. You’ve met some of our herd. You’ve seen who this work is for — and maybe you realized that includes you, or someone you love.

You’ve discovered why Stanwood, Michigan is exactly the right place for this mission. We hope you felt the deeper truth at the center of everything we do: every person deserves a place where they belong.

Every Story. Every Body.

Now comes the invitation.

There are so many ways to be part of this story:

• Join our Reading with the Horses program (to be announced soon), where children build confidence, fluency, and joy through quiet moments shared with a gentle equine partner.
• Attend our Tea Party Meet & Greet (June 14), a summer gathering where you can meet the herd, sip something lovely, and take home a vintage teacup as our thank you. More details to come.
• Volunteer your time at the barn and become part of the heartbeat that keeps this place moving.
• Sponsor a horse and step directly into their story of healing and purpose.
• Donate to help us grow, so we can serve more people, more families, more moments of transformation.
• Share this mission with someone who needs to know a place like this exists.

And soon — something even more meaningful.

A wall is being built at Journey Equus. Not to keep people out, but to hold the names of those who believe in what we’re building. A handcrafted, intentional, beautiful donor wall that will stand as a testament to the people who said, “Yes. Healing matters. Horses matter. This mission matters.”

We’re not ready to reveal everything yet… but something sacred is taking shape. And your name could be part of it.

The barn door is open. Will you walk into the story with us ❤️🐴

🌍 journeyequusmi.org 📧 Journeyequus@gmail.com

05/01/2026

Who is Equine Therapy for?

The short answer is: Everyone!!

At Journey Equus, our Equine‑Assisted Learning (EAL) sessions are designed for people who want to grow, strengthen skills, and reconnect with themselves in a hands‑on, horse‑centered environment.

EAL is for individuals, families, teens, and groups who are working on things like communication, confidence, emotional regulation, boundaries, leadership, problem‑solving, and healthy relationship patterns. It’s experiential, empowering, and grounded in the belief that horses help us see ourselves more clearly.

EAL is not therapy — and we don’t act as licensed therapists.
But we do believe in whole‑person support.

That’s why Journey Equus has aligned with Kelly Charette with Restore & Renew Counseling-Remus Location, a licensed mental health practice. This partnership allows us to collaborate ethically and intentionally when a participant’s goals overlap with therapeutic needs. She can provide clinical support when appropriate, while our EAL practitioners focus on experiential learning with the herd.

Together, we create a space where learning, growth, and healing can happen side by side — each within our own scope, each honoring the person in front of us.

If you or someone you know could benefit from this kind of work, we’d love to talk more about what an EAL session looks like at Journey Equus.

05/01/2026

Yesterday we commented that there were 4 areas that Path International recognized. Each of those areas carries its own purpose, its own rhythm, its own way of bringing people and horses together — and they deserve a closer look.

1. Therapeutic/Adaptive Horsemanship
Adaptive riding, driving, and interactive vaulting that support physical, cognitive, emotional, and social growth — taught by certified equine professionals.

2. Equine‑Assisted Learning (EAL)
Experiential learning with horses that builds life skills, emotional regulation, leadership, communication, and personal development.

3. Therapies Incorporating Equines
Clinical services led by licensed healthcare providers — counseling, occupational therapy, physical therapy, psychotherapy, and speech‑language pathology.

4. Equine Services for Veterans
Programs designed specifically for military personnel and veterans, supporting connection, resilience, and healing.

Each area is unique, but they all share one truth:
Horses meet people exactly where they are.
And that’s where the healing begins.

04/29/2026

"But I don't know how to ride a horse."🐴

When people hear “equine therapy,” they picture saddles and helmets. Trail rides and trotting.

But what we do at Journey Equus is different — and powerful — because it begins on the ground.

Ground-based work removes the pressure to perform.
No skills to master. No technique to perfect.
Just you, a horse, and the kind of honesty that can’t be faked.

You don’t need experience.
You don’t need to be brave or strong.
The horse doesn’t ask for any of that.
What they ask for — and teach in return — is presence, authenticity, connection and for you to listen.

And guess what? They'll listen back.

That’s why equine-assisted learning is so beautifully accessible.
It works for a child who’s never seen a horse, a veteran carrying unspoken weight, a teen who feels invisible, and an adult relearning how to breathe.

And for some participants, connection grows in another way — through adaptive riding.

Adaptive riding isn’t about speed or performance.
It’s a supported, intentional mounted experience that builds confidence, balance, sensory integration, and joy.
Another pathway into regulation. Another doorway into relationship.

Some people find their voice on the ground.
Some find their breath in the saddle.
Both belong here.

At Journey Equus, the goal isn’t riding — it’s connection.
The ground is where it begins.
The saddle is simply another place it can grow.

Every Story. Every Body.

04/29/2026

🌿 What Does a Journey Equus Session Feel Like?

A little structure. A little soul. A whole lot of presence.

At Journey Equus, no two sessions look exactly the same — because people arrive with different stories, different needs, and different ways of being in the world. And because we offer four distinct pathways of equine‑guided healing and learning, each experience unfolds in its own honest way.

But there is a rhythm you can count on.

We blend the PATH Intl. COASTER model (the structure that keeps everyone safe, grounded, and supported) with The HERD Institute’s relational model (the soul of attunement, consent, embodiment, and connection).

Together, they create a session that feels like this:

✨ You arrive and breathe again.

✨ We open the circle.

✨ You step into the activity.

✨ Something shifts.

✨ You try again — differently this time.

✨ We close with reflection.

Every session is a conversation between you, the horse, and the moment — guided by trained facilitators who honor your story, your pace, and your dignity.

It’s not therapy done to you.
It’s healing that unfolds with you.

If you’re curious what this could look like in your own life, we’d love to welcome you to the ranch.

04/27/2026

Such an amazing day spent with Kristin at Journey Equus!

04/26/2026

So Why Stanwood, Michigan?

Because it offers the perfect blend of rural peace and regional accessibility. Stanwood's quiet, low-stimulus environment supports trauma-informed, relationship-based work with horses. Its central location allows individuals and families from Canadian Lakes, Big Rapids, Morley, Howard City and Mount Pleasant to reach our services without long travel barriers.

And here in Stanwood, we already have the bones of a working equine therapy center. A quiet 20-acre ranch, safe infrastructure with room to expand, a herd with the temperament for healing work, lots of open space, trails and a natural environment that slows the heart rate the moment you step out of the car.

This is why Journey Equus belongs here in Stanwood, Michigan. Because the people around us, from Canadian Lakes to Big Rapids to Mount Pleasant and everywhere in between - deserve a place where healing feels natural, relational and accessible.

04/24/2026

Can't wait to bring back all that I will learn today 🧠

Northern Michigan Mental Wellness Conference