Longmeadow Rescue Ranch
As a young girl, I dreamed of becoming a horse woman - I took riding lessons and covered the walls of my bedroom with posters of horses. Since then, I've become a mother, a publisher and developed a high level of compassion for animals, but I have yet to become the horse woman of my dreams.
In April of this year, I rekindled that dream. I found Longmeadow Rescue Ranch, just 50 miles from my St. Louis home. Located in Union, Missouri, Longmeadow is home to nearly 160 farm animals, mostly horses, that have been abused and neglected. I became a volunteer and spend Sundays at the ranch, mucking stalls, feeding animals and learning more about caring for horses. With loving hands of staff and volunteers, these horses embark on a journey of healing that brings most of them back to good health. 
One might think that being at a ranch that rehabilitates abused and neglected farm animals, some of whom have endured unspeakable cruelty, would spur feelings of sadness in me - an ardent animal lover. At times I experience sadness, but mostly I feel gratitude that Longmeadow exists. Despite the often severe circumstances that bring animals to the ranch, the Humane Society of Missouri's Longmeadow Rescue Ranch is a peaceful place where healing and love are just commonplace.
To learn more about Longmeadow Rescue Ranch, visit www.longmeadowrescueranch.org. To read more about my experiences at Longmeadow, visit www.javajournalonline.com. Click on "archives" and read the full story in the August, 2009 issue of Java Journal.
-Marian Rein