There’s something about the hair of a horse that’s good for the soul of a man.
4 Locos Ranch owner Bill Barowsky quotes Winston Churchill when talking about his soon-to-be nonprofit program Horses for Heroes.
Barowsky started the program three years ago, after he and his wife purchased their Acton property from his in-laws. 4 Locos Ranch provides horse boarding services and horseback riding; and Horses for Heroes provides peer support for veterans, active duty military, and first responders struggling with career-related mental health issues.
Acton Resident Bill Barowsky started Horses for Heroes to assist veterans and first responders with mental health challenges through peer support. He is awaiting nonprofit status.
The idea from the program came from previous volunteer experience he’d completed at an equestrian therapy when he lived in California, where he is from.
“I volunteered for an equestrian therapy for the handicapped,” he said. “One story I love telling is this lady came out with her 12 year old daughter who was completely nonverbal. … They show up one day, we do our meet and greet and all that stuff, and yes, the young lady was nonverbal, but you could read her face to get her answers. After talking a little bit, we look at her and ask, ‘Do you want to see the horses?’ Her face lit up real bright. We went out there and brushed [the horse] down, got the horse tacked up, [then asked] ‘Do you want to ride?’ Again her face lit up all excited.
“We start to walk her towards the arena, just an outdoor arena,” he continued. “Within 30 seconds of crossing through the gate, she’s telling us how much she loves her mom and dad, what her favorite subject at school is, who her best friend is — she went from being completely nonverbal to a preteen who would not shut up.”
Barowsky, a navy veteran and retired firefighter himself, had already been thinking about starting the program here when he received a heartbreaking phone call that pushed him to do it.
“I got a phone call from a buddy in South Carolina that a mutual friend of ours, at 2 o’clock in the morning, stood in front of his girlfriend and took his own life,” he said.
Those who take part in the program complete various tasks around the property, and have the option to speak with Barowsky if they’d like to. They will be introduced to Blackie, specifically.
“I’ll pull him in the arena, I’m gonna give you a brush, and I’ll sit back and watch, and you do your thing,” Barowsky said. “These three [career] fields are very Type A personalities who just gotta do something. There’s fence they can attend to, stalls to be cleaned, hay that can be shoveled — there’s 100 things to do out here every day. So if you just gotta do something, let’s do it.”
Those who use the program do not tack, ride or walk the horses. They care for them in these other ways. The work is therapeutic, Barowsky said. At least, it is for him.
“I’m there,” he said. “It’s not even ‘I’ve been there.’ It’s ‘I am there.’ I deal with my own demons every single day. Fortunately I have the amazing love and support of a wife I do not deserve, who is here for everything for me.”
So far, Barowsky has been able to assist seven veterans and five different first responders both inside and outside Marion County. First responders include police, fire, EMS, and corrections officers.
“We had one veteran come out here, a former special forces [solider], a lot of issues going on, and we were walking down the fence line,” he said. “One of the horses came up to the fence line, he reached up and put his hand on the horse’s head right between its eyes — and one of the former deadliest men on the faces of the earth started bawling.”
“We’re finally getting to a point with the military where [mental health discussion] is no longer a shameful thing anymore,” he continued. “But it’s still a very big stigma in the first responder field, and unfortunately for some of the guys, because of that stigma, they end up taking a permanent solution to a temporary problem.”
In 2021, there were 87 line of duty deaths nationwide in the fire service, and 245 reported suicides. Barowsky hopes his program helps to reduce that number.
Those who do take part in Horses for Heroes also receive contact information for mental health professionals who specifically assist with the mental health of those who serve in these career fields.
Anyone interested in taking part in the Horses for Heroes program can do so by contacting Barowsky at 317-512-4782 or 4locosranch@gmail.com. Visit their Facebook page to learn more.