Faiths Story

Volunteers

I am 14 years old and from Cockburnspath in Berwickshire. I have a farming background and so had some animal experience with sheep and cattle before starting volunteering at Eat Sleep Ride, however I soon realised that horses are very different and I had a lot to learn! I've been volunteering and having some lessons at ESR for just under two years and I have learnt so much in that time-from how to tie up a haynet properly to meeting and really connecting with a diverse range of people from many different social backgrounds. Currently, I'm busy with schoolwork, as I'm sitting my GCSEs in May, as well as attempting to finish work experience applications, however I'm really looking forward to a bit of more regular volunteering when these are finished! On a slightly more exciting note, I am planning and fundraising for a three week conservation expedition to Borneo in July, where I am really looking forward to getting to travel to the jungle and spend time volunteering in orangutan and sun bear sanctuaries as well as meeting the local people and understanding their way of life. As an aspiring vet, this is really interesting to me as there are few chances to see cases with wild animals such as these, however I have found that the horses at ESR also have a lot to teach me! I have gained so much valuable knowledge from my volunteering at ESR, however I think this is the most important thing-how much there is to learn from horses.