The club, who runs through volunteers, offers activities which can include gaining experience grooming and leading horses, or developing riding skills.
RDA Seymour secretary Sue Cross said the volunteers are essential to their organisation.
“We could not operate and offer lessons to our program participants without them,” she said.
“We rely on volunteers to check the horses every day to ensure that they are healthy, and have feed and water.
“We rely on a team of volunteers on our lesson days to prepare horses, set up the arena, assist the participants, lead the horses and to coach the lessons.”
The organisation currently has 16 volunteers and come from various areas in Central Victoria and Melbourne.
Some are able to commit to regular volunteering, while some juggles volunteering with the RDA with other important commitments like work.
“The common factor amongst all the volunteers is really their commitment to being a part of something that brings so much pleasure and benefit to the participants in our equine program,” Ms Cross said.
“There are many aspects of the volunteering role that bring fulfilment, but the most rewarding has to be on lesson days when we see the joy in our participants.”
“Their faces light up when we introduce them to their horses each fortnight.
“It’s amazing to see how they progress from one lesson to the next, not just in their equine skills and knowledge, but also their own confidence and ability.”
For National Volunteers Week, Ms Cross expressed her gratitude to the volunteers for making RDA Seymour possible.
“To our volunteers at the RDA Seymour, an enormous Thank You,” she said.
“Thank you for the time and energy that you put into our organisation, the skills that you bring, the knowledge you share and the support and friendship that you offer.
“Our centre would not exist without you, and we can’t thank you enough.”
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