A CENTER FOR 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT:
Where the wisdom of the past, present, and future of leadership comes together for the dignity and benefit of all.
Your Donations are Tax Deductible.
May 2022
First Nature Notes
Dear Friends of First Nature Foundation,
It’s not even June and we’ve had a few days with a 100 degree heat index! Summer seems to be already here in Central Florida. The rains have started coming again, and the grass and weeds are growing…well, like weeds!! The pastures are looking good and so are the horses. We’ve been replanting our triangle garden this spring after some winter frosts damaged all of our shrubs there, and the new plants seem to be thriving.
We have been adding events to the ranch calendar with a private retreat scheduled for early June, and a clinic in horse care best practices in late June, but in between is our fundraiser! Wine Sampling Experience Fundraiser At The Ranch, scheduled for the evening of Friday, June 17th. You’ll get to sample a variety of exclusive wines. You’ll also get to sample charcuterie and socialize among the picturesque views of the ranch. We are limited to a maximum of 30 people for this event, so sign up soon before all seats are all gone!
We also have another 4H event on June 25, 2022 -Keeping a Healthy Horse, Pasture, and Environment Workshop. It's a day full of horse focused learning led by University of Florida experts. It will include topics on horse behavior, horse health, toxic weeds, improving pasture quality, and manure management.See more information for all of our events on our Events page.
The first cohort of veterans in our Horse Wisdom for Heroes graduated this past weekend. We used an assessment called the Perceived Stress Scale to measure the participants’ stress levels at the start and at the end of our 6-session program. Preliminary data collection indicates that the veterans experienced an average stress reduction of 40% by the end of the program! Some of the program evaluation comments the vets gave us include, “The program helped me to deal with stressful situations that I couldn’t control,” “it helped me handle stress better,” and “The staff were very good and helped all of us share an amazing experience with the horses.”
If you want to partner with us to continue to make an impact like these programs for more vets, and to offer next level programs for graduates, please consider donating. We are looking for monthly donors and sponsors. Or consider becoming a monthly donor or even a sponsor of our PASOS grief support group, a twice monthly virtual support group which serves those who have lost a spouse or child to suicide.
As you can see, we have been busy helping different audiences increase their self-leadership and their shared leadership skills through our various playshop programs. Might you consider helping us build more regular revenue to continue offering these programs? Here’s a link to donate (click on the “make this a monthly donation” link when you get there).
Do you know of any groups or experts who might want to run a program or hold an event at the ranch now that we are starting to fill our calendar? We are willing to consider hosting events at the ranch, as long as there is some small alignment with our mission of leadership development in conjunction with nature. I’d be happy to give you private individual tours and confer further. Please contact me at kerul@firstnaturefoundation.org or message me on Facebook to set up a time.
Take care and stay healthy!
Kerul and Crew
First Nature Ranch / First Nature Foundation
“Where the past, present, and future of leadership come together for the dignity and benefit of all.”
