By Ruth Ann Ruiz
The Post Newspaper Features Editor
Alexa and Janet Clark are a mother and daughter team of volunteers at Soleana Stables. Mom, Janet, is from New Jersey but her daughter, Alexa, is a native Texan attending Pearland Dawson High School.
T-ball captured Alexa at the youthful age of four. She graduated to softball at age five and jumped into competitive softball leagues somewhere around the age of seven. Playing for her school teams, along with travel softball, became a routine she treasured, and softball was a secure part of her future.
It was during her sophomore year that she had to face some tough facts. “I noticed a tremor in my right hand which impacted me when I threw the ball and sometimes when I was writing,” shared Alexa.
Through medical investigation she learned she had an injury to her shoulder and upper back which resulted in a radial nerve injury.
She has slight tremors in her right-hand which doctors have speculated will be lifelong but are not noticeable except when she throws a ball. Treatment has provided some relief, but she will never return to her preinjury status.
“I had to let go of my vision of softball as a career or college aspiration due to the injury,” said Alexa.
Horses were not Alexa’s thing but her mom on the other hand grew up riding horses (not playing softball).
“I rode from ages 9-18,” said Janet. “I spent my summers at the barn. My parents leased a horse for me for the summer. I’d feed and groom my summer horse and muck out a bunch of stalls. Every day my mom would drop me off at the barn on her way to work and pick me up on her way home.”
Janet did extra chores around the barn for others and earned riding lessons.
Then Janet was off to college and horses became a fond childhood memory, that is until the mother-daughter team found Soleana Stables.
“I told Alexa if she wasn’t going to be busy with travel softball, she had to find something to do with her time, so I suggested she look into volunteering,” explained Janet.
“First, I tried the animal shelter, but I didn’t really like it there. Then I tried the foodbank and that didn’t fit me,” said Alexa.
Her third option was a charm.
“My cousins volunteered at the stables and told me to check this place out. Right away, I knew I belonged here,” said Alexa.
Alexa loves the comradeship she has found at the stables. “It really is all about the children and I really like the way everyone gets along so well. The families of the students know us and talk with us. All the other volunteers are friendly, and Sasha (the stable’s founder) is wonderful. I just love it here,” she added.
“It was supposed to just be her thing, but she said, ‘Mom you love horses. Why don’t you come along?” Janet said.
Now, the duo is both fully invested in volunteering at the stables. They groom the horses and clean out stalls if needed. Alexa and Janet are both trained to be assistants for the riders and horse leaders.
Janet and Alexa light up as they share about the joy in working with the students and watching them grow and develop with therapeutic riding. “You get to see the difference you make in the moment,” said Janet.
On this Saturday, Alexa is working as an assistant for a 12-year-old rider who has been coming to the stables for about five years. Sara is autistic and unlike some of the other less verbal autistic riders, Sara is very verbal, as her father explained.
“When we first brought Sara to the stables, she only wanted to ride on one horse, or she’d pitch a fit. But Dea Martin wouldn’t let her have her way. She told Sara, ‘First you have to ride this horse then if you do well, you can ride the horse you want to ride’” shared Sara’s father.
“I attribute a lot of Sara’s progress to the program here at the stable,” he added.
Alexa is calm and available for assistance throughout Sara’s lesson. They circle the arena many times. Sara manages the riding lesson with great ease and successfully participated in the fitness activities designed for special needs individuals on horseback.
Sara’s lesson ends without a hitch. Her assistant, Alexa, is smiling and sweating.
As Alexa takes a break with her mother, she discusses her future. As she enters her senior year in high school, she has her sights set on out of state colleges.
“I love Texas, but I just want to get out to see and experience more,” said Alexa. Her list of options spans the entire continent. Which one is her top choice? The University of Georgia.
What will she study? “Volunteering at the stables had helped me focus on my future in biology maybe I’ll become a physical therapist,” shared Alexa.
