Carla Esposito with Alice

My name is Carla Esposito. I am a native of Philadelphia, PA. I have lived in Florida since 1994. I transferred here with Xerox Corp. at that time. I have a bachelor of Arts degree from Arcadia University in Pa. I worked for Xerox for 20 years. I reside just down the street from the Saddle Up Riding Club!

I have been browsing the barns in the area since I moved into my house about seven years ago. I took a few lessons at Boomerang and one day while walking, I noticed a new operation called Saddle Up. There were some activities going on that day, so I stopped in. While talking to someone, I was informed that the farm had volunteer opportunities. They told me to go into the office and check with one of the workers. I am not even sure who I spoke with that day, but I was very interested, so I signed up!

Since that time I have spent my hours helping with therapy riding, cleaning stalls, re-learning horse care and I did get to ride one night. I can not express how rewarding every part of my volunteer experience has been. Working with the therapy program gives one such a feeling of accomplishment. Helping those less fortunate, physically, than ourselves warms the heart and soul. Being around the horses is very therapeutic for any human being. They are such wonderful animals. The physical work of taking care of the horses is very soothing for the nerves! And, last but not least, working with the other volunteers and staff at Saddle Up is reward in itself.

I want to thank everyone involved for the opportunities that I have acquired by being a part of this wonderful organization and also for selecting me Volunteer of the Quarter. You will never know how much all of this means to me.