Two local Equine therapeutic riding centers have been selected for a new TV series in production titled "My Horse • My Wingman" showing how horses are helping our soldiers returning from war, as well as veterans from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm and other conflicts, recover from the physical and emotional wounds they incurred as a result of their...
Two local Equine therapeutic riding centers have been selected for a new TV series in production titled "My Horse * My Wingman" showing how horses are helping our soldiers returning from war, as well as veterans from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm and other conflicts, recover from the physical and emotional wounds they incurred as a result of their service to our country. When conventional physical therapies, counseling and prescription drugs have not achieved desired results, horses are helping our soldiers and veterans to rebuild and recover what they can of their lives after their service to our country.
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This 13 episode TV series will feature 13 PATH International Certified therapeutic riding centers around the county, including Special People United to Ride (SPUR) at Sunnyside Equestrian Center in Lincroft, N.J. and Shamrock Reins in Pipersville, Pa., and have been selected to feature their military program for soldiers and veterans.
The TV Series, produced by the award winning equine TV production company HorseFlicksTV is designed to create more awareness and interest in these programs for military heroes, enabling more access to these services for soldiers and veterans wounded in war. In producing the Pilot Episode for the TV series, Executive Producers Jon May and Jo Ann Marble were profoundly changed by the experience. "These soldiers and veterans have such a sense of honor and duty to their country, you just don't find much any more. They voluntarily go off to war and see things and have to do things we can't even imagine, and they come home a changed person. The entire family dynamic is changed when dad or mom goes off to war, and comes home physically or emotionally wounded from their service. Often the conventional treatments don't work for them and they find themselves in a downward spiral," said Marble.
May adds, "When soldiers return home, they can't un-see or forget what they have witnessed, they will carry those horrific images of war with them for the rest of their lives, and many return without limbs, PTSD or traumatic brain injury. Sadly every day, 22 of our soldiers and veterans can't cope with their problems and existence, and take their own lives- 22...every day."
HorseFlicksTV felt that they could use their resources and production talent to do something to create more awareness of these special military programs that enlist the aid of horses -- their Wingman, to start their journey to recovery, or to at least salvage what they can of their lives.
"These are stories of courage and hope, and we hope viewers will see and hear these amazing stories from our soldiers and veterans. If they have a serviceman in their family, or know of a serviceman who might benefit from these programs, we will have all the information they need in each program to secure a referral to a center near them" said Jon.
Equine assisted therapies are not new, they have helped hundreds of thousands of individuals from children to adults, achieve significant results in dealing with physical and emotional disabilities. PATH International, an umbrella organization headquartered in Denver, Colorado, creates and maintains certification standards for over 800 equine therapeutic centers in the U.S. and abroad. Approximately 200 centers currently offer a Military Program for our soldiers and veterans.
Marble said, "We selected PATH centers because of their high standards and commitment to excellence. Making the selection of the 13 centers to be featured was difficult, because we had more interest than broadcast slots available, so we tried to get a fairly even distribution of centers across the country. We might do a second season which would enable us to feature another 13 centers, but we need to get the first 13 locations filmed and produced."
It hasn't been an easy mission by any means. The first step was to produce a Pilot Episode to show to broadcasters in order to secure a broadcast commitment. The Pilot episode was filmed at Ride On Center For Kids (ROCK) in Georgetown, Texas.
Meeting the soldiers and their "Wingman" the producers came to understand how in many cases, the horses saved their lives. The horses are not judgmental; they are always there for their soldier. They truly are their "Wingman" which is where the title for the series came from. "There is a bond between them that you have to see to understand, the horse is the one they can trust and put their faith in, and work on the road to recovery together" said Marble.
After the Pilot Episode was completed, they secured an initial broadcast agreement from HRTV - The Horse Sports Channel for an exceptional 234 airings of the 13 episodes over a three-year period. HorseFlicksTV is also in discussions with two other broadcasters for distribution of the TV series. "The subject matter is something that resonates with the broadcasters we have spoken with. They know that our soldiers and veterans are owed a debt we cannot fully repay, but we will try with this series on courage and hope," said Jon. "We owe it to those who have served our country."
With the production of the Pilot episode and the securing of a broadcast commitment, two major hurdles were accomplished in the mission; the third is the filming and production of the 13 episodes around the country. While May and Marble are donating all their time and resources to the Wingman project, there are still the hard out of pocket expenses for travel, airfare, hotels, fuel and third party production expenses.
They initially looked at corporate underwriting for the series, but in every case, the corporate entity wanted total editorial control of the production. "Our soldiers have earned the right to tell their stories as they remember them. We couldn't see a company having the right to alter or edit their stories for a corporate agenda. We could not take that away from our soldiers and veterans" said May.
With that, HorseFlicksTV decided to allow the American public show their support for our soldiers to produce the TV series, as well as the equestrian community, who already know the healing power of horses. A crowd-funding site has been established at www.CrowdRise.com/MYHORSEMYWINGMAN where those who wish to show their support for our military personnel may do so.
The Pilot Episode for "My Horse * My Wingman" can be seen in its entirety at that link. Appearing in the Pilot Episode are a Vietnam Veteran, a female Apache Helicopter pilot who served in Iraq, and a Marine who was injured in a staging accident in Kuwait. All faced physical and emotional challenges but with the help of their Wingman, they have made remarkable recoveries and progress with their disabilities. The stories are both heartfelt and compelling.
With production slated to begin in a few months the public is invited to participate in the success of this 13 episode TV series and may show their support for our soldiers and veterans by watching the Pilot episode and contributing what they can at the above link.
Additional information can be found at the website www.MYHORSEMYWINGMAN.com
In closing, May noted, "Our service men and women pay an incredible price to protect the freedoms we enjoy each day, and we hope with this TV series 'My Horse - My Wingman' we can help increase awareness and accessibility of these programs that utilize the healing power of horses to help our soldiers and veterans rebuild and recover their lives. With the help of the public and equestrian community, we can collectively thank them for their service."
ABOUT HORSEFLICKSTV: In its 14th year of operation, HorseFlicksTV is an equine TV production company with studios in Dallas, Texas and Palmetto, Fla. Each of the principals is a long-term equestrian and brings a wealth of experience to quality horse programming that is produced and distributed in the U.S. and countries abroad. Having produced over 250 half-hours of TV programming HorseFlicksTV is the recipient of 21 Awards of Excellence from nine different judging competitions, including the coveted USEF Daniel P. Lenehan Award for Media Excellence for its 4-hour production on the Live Oak CDE in Ocala, Fla., a selection trial for the World Equestrian Games.
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