In 2022, Rheem Manufacturing, an HVAC contractor, debuted its “Difference Maker Award” program that aims to recognize partners who “go above and beyond to support the causes they care about.” Winners of the award earn a $10,000 donation from Rheem to the charity of their choice.
Sparrow Heating and Air Conditioning, a contractor through Rheem, nominated the Warrior Ranch Foundation in Calverton as their recipient of the award for much-needed HVAC systems.
Representatives from Rheem, Sparrow, Suffolk County, and other contractors gathered at Warrior Ranch to learn more about their mission and to present the award.
Founded in 2019, Warrior Ranch prides itself on “giving a second chance to humans and horses.” The foundation takes in former racehorses or workhorses who can no longer fulfill their respective functions, retrains, and rehabilitates them, while simultaneously working with Veterans and first responders who utilize the horses’ therapeutic benefits. Often, horses who find their way to the ranch get adopted by clients and earn a “forever home,” while their newfound owners receive the benefits of a sensitive companion for whom to care.
Equine therapy can help patients who experience a wide variety of symptoms. Patients with neuromuscular disorders can benefit from improved balance, coordination, and body control from equine therapy, while the practice has also been found to reduce blood pressure, heart rate, and calm physical symptoms of anxiety and stress. Patients are also likely to experience a more metaphysical connection with a horse, as, like dogs or even dolphins, horses are highly intelligent and receptive to human emotion.
Suffolk County Legislator Nick Caracappa (C-Selden), Chair of the Veterans Committee, played a role in coordinating the contractors with Warrior Ranch, as he had learned of the HVAC needs the foundation experienced.
“I was at a separate event for the Warrior Ranch and Eileen Shanahan [Founder and President of Warrior Ranch Foundation] told me some of the needs that needed to be rectified in order for them to be more successful,” Caracappa told The Messenger. “She mentioned that they can’t provide certain services when it’s too hot or too cold outside and that they could really use an HVAC system in their building, which happens to be very old.”
Caracappa also mentioned that the contractors present for the award would, on “any other day, be competitors,” but they all came together for the success of the ranch and the support of first responders and Veterans.
Program Coordinator, Horse Trainer, and Barn Manager Juliette Hackett described the two resident horses and their pasts, as well as their temperaments and sensitivities to their clients.
Hackett took Sully, an eighteen-year-old standardbred (pictured above), out of the barn to demonstrate his training. Wear marks on Sully’s mane and body are visible from his short time wearing racing saddles. After his brief career as a racehorse, Sully was taken in by the Amish as a workhorse. After he was no longer viable for life on the farm, Warrior Ranch found Sully at an auction in South Jersey and brought him to Calverton in 2021.
“When people are training a horse to race, there are people riding the horse, grooming him, caring for him, and feeding him. But when his career is done, the horse loses that routine and care and he just has to hope he winds up in a place that cares about his well-being,” Hackett told The Messenger.
Contrary to some beliefs, racehorses and workhorses alike are cared for intently by their owners. Sully has a notable feature of a missing eye, likely removed due to infection or injury. Hackett notes the clean, neat removal of his eye, indicating care by his previous owners.
“If you’re a tradesman, you’re going to care for your horses. You need to work, so you take care of your horse while it’s yours,” said Hackett. “But the problem is that when they’re done and no longer useful, that care stops in caring about where the horse ends up. That’s where a lot of horses become unwanted because people don’t want to put in the time or energy to find them a good home.”
Hackett says the ranch got “very, very lucky” with Sully, as he is capable of pulling carts, grounds work, and beginner training courses, as well as being “very sensitive” and people-loving.
The ranch has another resident horse, Ranger, who is a bit more temperamental and skittish, but is coming a long way with proper care and training. The ranch recently had two miniature horses who were adopted.
The stable at Warrior Ranch features a slew of other donations, such as construction work provided by local labor unions and feed boxes built by local Eagle Scouts.
“Over the years, Rheem has witnessed contractors uplift their communities in a myriad of ways, and we are inspired,” said Paul Mudd, a sales manager with Rheem. “That’s why we introduced the Rheem Difference Maker Award, so that we can recognize and help our pro-partner contracts continue their mission of giving back to others.”
Mudd says that since the award’s inception, funds have gone to a range of causes, from military families to pediatric cancer to expanding mental health services.
“This foundation was built on the love of country, the love of horses, and it has been a hell of a journey, and we couldn’t do it without companies like you and volunteers like we have here,” said Warrior Ranch Founder and President Eileen Shanahan. She added that Warrior Ranch was founded just a few months before the COVID-19 Pandemic.
“It was actually a blessing for us, because everyone wanted to be outside and work,” said Shanahan.
Warrior Ranch Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located at 1179 Edwards Avenue in Calverton.