Every morning 24-year-old Jonathon Emmanuel Ojar leaves his Valsayn home and goes to work to bathe and groom horses and clean their stalls. His place of employment is Sea View Stables high up in the mountains of the Northern Range on the North Coast Road, Maracas. A graduate of Trinity East College and with passes in seven subjects, he works for free at the stables.
The only child of his parents, he devotes almost all his time working with the horses. Ojar is a former horseback riding student of Sea View Stables and said he decided to volunteer his services to its NGO, Horses Helping Humans (HHH). HHH was created by the stables’ owner, Karen Stollmeyer, where horses provide therapy for children with autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, emotional and other mental disorders.
They are also used to help at-risk youth and anyone suffering from abuse or any kind of trauma. Retired racehorses, which are usually put to sleep, are adopted by Stollmeyer and her husband, Ernest Matthews. The children are taught to bond with the horses, physically and emotionally, to help them develop motor and social skills.
Ojar has also been assigned to be the NGO’s main “picture taker” while the children are in session. “It’s a good feeling to help in the therapy of the children here.
“I feel they are misunderstood. They didn’t choose to be that way. They are different but want to be accepted like everyone else.”
In addition, this young man said he “prefers the quiet lifestyle” and loves the beautiful scenery at Sea View Stables, the nice open air and quietness.
“It’s the ideal place to work,” he said.
Describing a regular day, Ojar said, he arrives at the stables around 8.15 am and, donning his boots, gets down to work helping to bathe Rainbow, Charlie, Boogie Blues and Storm Street, brush them and tidy their stalls.
“I like working with the horses,” Ojar said he has no other interest, apart from exercising on afternoons, than working with the horses.
“It’s the only thing I like for now. I have no other plans right now. I’ll figure it out,” he said. He started at the stables in February and goes there four times a week. Ojar said he has watched children bond with the horses.