#4 It's August Already!!!

Today was weirder than most... Candi Bowersox tacked up her horse Dually and said I WAS going riding! I may be around horses all day, but it's been 11 years since I've been on top of one! And I admit it, it was a fun way to end a very busy day and Dually was a perfect gentleman! Thanks, Candi! You know, me on a horse is such a rare site, we should have made it the next Highlights Newsletter cover!!
Anyway, back to the program~ We've had a number of particularly good sessions this week thanks in part to some great energy from new instructor, Bruce Army. Bruce comes to us from an education background and doubles as a western horse show judge. He's been a great addition to the instructional team, and we hope to be picking up 2 more instructors in the next few weeks.
Many of our school kids are just finishing up their summer session and plans are already underway for fall programming. We also hope to be picking up another school contract this fall after having a wonderful visit from a local principal who loved our program. She had a chance to observe one of our more difficult boys groups and we're proud to say that they totally wow'd her! We're also pleased to say that we've got 3 returning schools, increased use by a number of other agencies, and more individual participants all the time!
Our staff has also been doing some in-service work on goal setting and behavioral objective writing. It was a hard sell at first, but it sure improves our planning and makes our sessions even more productive. I do believe our staff is actually coming to enjoy the process!
Last night we had our August board meeting and the discussion really drove home our need for corporate sponsorship. The Light Center is a GREAT organization and we SO want to be adopted by some caring corporate supporters! We've been really blessed to have a long stream of devoted donors who have brought us this far, but our needs have outgrown our finances and for us, there's no turning back... We've got kids who have come to depend on this program and we just can't let them down. If you know anyone who works for a community minded business, please pass on our name, pass on our web site, and please put in a couple a'dozen good words about us!
One last thing, before I go... I want to send out a special thanks to our college gal, Leslie, who worked with us all summer. She's fantastic with the kids and we'll miss her a lot now that she's returning to school. Good luck this fall Leslie! We'll look for you at Xmas!!!
Tune in later this week for the scoop on our Rubber Duck Launch and the Team Reil party~
It'll take a whole page in itself!! Have a great night!
Jan