Champ’s Heart looking for new home
SHELLEY, Idaho (KIFI) - Champ's Heart's mission is to help special needs kids.
They were previously located at the North Bingham County Historical Park in Shelley.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, the nonprofit has had to leave the premises, something that founder Larry Cudmore says is going to be pretty difficult to replace.
"It's going to be very disruptive to the children who look forward to this every week," Cudmore said. "Champ's Heart will survive. Larry Cudmore will survive, but the disruption in the routine is very hard on the children and the veterans as well."
Champ's Heart is an organization that provides free healing horse encounters to kids with special needs and veterans with PTSD.
Cudmore says he has personally seen lives change when hopping on the saddle.
"One veteran here who came back from Vietnam started riding a horse here a month ago, and has talked about how for the first time in his life, he's had sustained peace from being able to spend some time with a horse," Cudmore said.
What Champ's Heart needs is a new location. They are looking to build an approximately $2 million indoor arena on around 10 acres of land that could be fully operational year-round.
"When we get our indoor arena, it will be temperature controlled, so it will never be warmer than 80 in the summer and never colder than 40 in the winter," Cudmore said. "And so, there's no more canceling because of weather, wind, heat, rain or snow."
Any donation made would help more than 75 children and veterans who spend healing time with the horses every week.
"If somebody wanted to donate some land to us as their gift to the children that are often overlooked or the veterans who are underserved, that would be a gift to them," Cudmore said.
With no current location to call home, Cudmore says they will do anything to keep Champ's Heart up and running.
"Whatever it takes," Cudmore said. "I'm not going to give up. We're not going to let this go."
To learn more about how you can help, visit their website at https://www.champsheart.org/ or contact Larry Cudmore at (208) 589-4082.
