Whether it be her day job as an elementary school teacher or running her nonprofit, Susan Fischer is dedicated to the children in her community. Fischer is the cofounder of the Oregon chapter of Personal Ponies as well as A Child’s Haven located in Dallas Oregon. A Child’s Haven is a nonprofit that gives children living with physical, mental, and emotional disabilities the chance to connect with a horse and gain a sense of responsibility. What Fischer does for Child’s Haven is a lengthy list, but one thing she does is holds events at her house for the children and their families to come have the opportunity to be surrounded by people that are just like them and the kids just get to be kids.
Fischer herself can relate to the children who participate in events that Child’s Haven hosts because she grew up with cerebral palsy. She had the ability to overcome her differences and feel like a normal kid when she was riding her horse. Fischer was riding her horse for pleasure and emotional companionship, but she got something out of riding that she wasn’t expecting, it started to help with her physical disability. “When I would go for a checkup with my doctor he would know if I was riding or not based off of my results” Fischer said as she was explaining the benefits of horse assisted activities. Fischer’s fiancé Bob Wallace said “I’ll do my part, and make sure to feed the horses but I do it for her. This helps Susan and I can see it, plus she loves being able to help others and show them how great these animals are”.
When Fischer was working at a feed store she was approached by a woman named Peggy Kernan who asked if Fischer would be interested in starting an Oregon chapter of Personal Ponies. Personal Ponies is a national organization that uses ponies as a form of assisted activity and therapy. Fischer agreed to help start the chapter with Kernan because of her interest in horses and the fact that she thought it would be fun, but that all changed at one of the first meetings. Fischer found out Kernan’s daughter had died that day from a terminal illness and Kernan still attended the meeting. This proved how important and meaningful starting the Oregon chapter of Personal Ponies was to Kernan and that triggered Fischer to take that more seriously. Fischer had always thought of herself as solely a horse person rather than a people person, now she sees herself as both and intertwines the two.
Fisher hopes for a future where animal assisted therapies replace pharmaceuticals. She also hopes that A Child’s Haven grows and is able to help more children and families. Fischer is excited yet sad to see the day that she is able to retire. She is sad to say goodbye to her school and the career she has made for herself but excited because then she can give A Child’s Haven the attention it needs. “Retiring will mean I’m able to write more grants and attract more volunteers as well as do more for our community with these animals” says Fischer.