Open the barn door for a child
Every child deserves the chance to experience the confidence, responsibility, and joy that grow through a connection with horses. Lionheart Horses for Kids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization created to make riding and horsemanship opportunities more accessible and affordable for children. Your support helps families take part in lessons and equestrian experiences while helping care for the lesson horses at the heart of our program.
Help a child find confidence, courage, and a place to belong
At Lionheart, children learn much more than how to ride. They learn to groom, tack, handle, and care for horses. They discover patience, compassion, teamwork, and the value of showing up for another living being. For many young riders, the barn becomes a place to breathe, build friendships, face challenges, and recognize strengths they did not know they had. A gift to Lionheart Horses for Kids helps make that experience possible.
Horsemanship that helps children grow
Our story
Lionheart Stables LLC was established in 2018, and our riding lesson program began in 2021. Since then, it has grown into a family-oriented equestrian program serving children and riders with a wide range of experience, from first-time beginners to more advanced riders. Our approach has always been about more than time in the saddle. Students learn the complete experience of horsemanship: grooming, tacking, safe handling, responsibility, and daily care. Through that work, children build confidence, patience, independence, and respect for the horses who teach them. Today, Lionheart maintains approximately 20 lesson horses and offers a full lesson program, Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA) teams, horse-showing opportunities, clinics, and other equestrian activities. Lionheart Horses for Kids was established as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization to expand this mission. Our goal is to make meaningful riding and horsemanship experiences accessible and affordable for more children while helping support the substantial cost of caring for the lesson horses who make the program possible.
Mission statement
Lionheart Horses for Kids creates opportunities for children to grow in confidence, responsibility, and belonging through accessible riding, hands-on horsemanship, and the extraordinary bond between horses and people.
Whole-child growth
Riding challenges children to communicate, persevere, and trust themselves. The barn gives those lessons a place to become real.
Whole-horse care
Students learn that horsemanship means caring for a living partner, not simply arriving for a ride.
Real access
Financial support can help reduce the barrier between a child and lessons, summer sessions, teams, and other meaningful experiences.
A lasting community
Lionheart is a place where friendships form, achievements are celebrated, and families feel connected.
Your gift supports children and the horses who carry the mission
Every contribution helps create more chances for children to learn, grow, and belong at the barn.
Riding lesson assistance
Help make lessons more affordable for families who may otherwise be unable to participate.
Horse sponsorship
Support the ongoing care of the trusted lesson horses who safely teach and encourage our riders.
Summer sessions and IEA opportunities
Help children experience summer sessions, teamwork, sportsmanship, and the wider equestrian community.
Safety and program needs
Support equipment, clinics, horse-showing opportunities, and the resources needed to operate a responsible program.
What begins in the barn reaches far beyond it
A child who learns to lead a horse also learns to lead with calm and confidence. A rider who keeps trying after a difficult lesson discovers resilience. A student who grooms, tacks, and cares for a horse learns responsibility and empathy through action. These are not simply riding lessons. They are opportunities for children to become more capable, compassionate, and confident young people. Your generosity can become a child's first lesson, a family's chance to continue, or the dependable care that keeps a beloved lesson horse healthy and ready to teach.
Choose the part of the mission that speaks to you
Give where it is needed most
A general donation gives Lionheart Horses for Kids flexibility to support accessible programming, horse care, safety needs, and the opportunities that will have the greatest impact.
Give TodaySponsor a lesson horse
Our lesson horses are patient teachers and trusted partners. A sponsorship helps support feed, routine care, and the many daily needs involved in keeping them healthy and comfortable.
Every gift cares for the horses at the heart of the program.
Sponsor a HorseHelp a family access lessons
Your gift can help reduce the cost of riding lessons and horsemanship experiences for families facing financial barriers.
Support a RiderBecome one of the Lionheart 100
The Lionheart 100 is an exclusive Founding Circle limited to 100 donors. Every membership begins at $1,000, with the shared goal of raising $100,000 to help build lasting opportunities for children and provide care for the horses who make those opportunities possible. Founding Circle members may choose to be recognized on the Lionheart 100 Founding Circle Wall, on our website, and in our annual report. Members will also receive invitations to special donor events and updates about the impact of their generosity.
Lionheart Horses for Kids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Questions about giving
Is my donation tax-deductible?
Lionheart Horses for Kids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Please consult your tax adviser about your individual circumstances.
Can I direct my gift to a specific purpose?
Yes. You may choose to support lesson access, sponsor a lesson horse, join the Lionheart 100, or give where your support is needed most.
Can I make a gift by check?
Yes. Please make checks payable to Lionheart Horses for Kids and mail them to 292 West Mill Road, Long Valley, NJ 07853.
Who can I contact with a question?
We would be glad to help. Call 908-581-5026 or email [email protected].
Get in touch
A community built around confidence, care, and joy.