Ribbon Cutting Held For Angels Gate Ranch

10/30/08

The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting for ANGELS Gate Ranch, Inc. on Saturday, October 25th. Participants enjoyed a tour of the facility and a "ranch-hand" brunch hosted by owners Virginia & Keith Coco.
ANGELS Gate Ranch, Inc. Adults Needing Guidance Education Love and Support (ANGELS) will help young people ages 8-24 receive the needed societal support to enable them to realize their goals. ANGELS Gate Ranch, Inc. conducts workshops, camps and extended programs to help develop happy, self confident, critical thinking, productive citizens.
As part of their life skills program, ANGELS Gate Ranch also offers workshops, camps and retreats for community groups and youth organizations. These workshops are geared towards specific lessons and skills depending on the goals of the group leader. They also have special programs for youth aging out of the foster care system. Their programs deal with issues such as improving communication skills, building relationships, conflict resolution, creative thinking, empowering women, and Financial Literacy. Their aim is to help in the fight against domestic violence, teen pregnancy and lack of skills in the workforce.
They look to partner with local governments, school districts and businesses to build a network that will aid in this mission and bring our youth up to speed with the rest of the country.
At ANGELS Gate Ranch, Inc., they seek to incorporate the innovative practices of Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) in conjunction with traditional activities to help "ANGELS" in their development toward becoming responsible, productive citizens. Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) incorporates horses experientially for emotional growth and learning. EAL is experiential in nature. This means that participants learn about themselves and others by participating in activities with the horses, and then processing (or discussing) feelings, behaviors, and patterns. This approach has been compared to the "Ropes" courses used by therapists, treatment facilities, and human development courses around the world. But EAP/EAL has the added advantage of utilizing horses, which are dynamic and powerful living beings.
The focus of EAL is not riding or horsemanship. The focus of EAL involves setting up ground activities involving the horses which will require participants to apply certain skills. Non-verbal communication, anger management, conflict resolution, self-confidence, creative thinking and problem-solving, leadership, responsibility, teamwork and relationships, communication and attitude are several examples of the tools utilized and developed by EAL.
For more information contact Virginia A. Coco, AFC, at ANGELS Gate Ranch, Inc., 2000 Sexton Rd., Marianna, FL 32448, 850-526-3417.