GET INVOLVED

Volunteer

Along with our horses, volunteers are the heart and soul of the CTREE program. CTREE provides unique and rewarding volunteer opportunities for those interested in working with special needs individuals and horses. 

Program volunteers assist with our therapeutic riding lessons, & equine assisted services as horse leaders and sidewalkers. Horse leaders are responsible for grooming, tacking and leading horses during lessons. Sidewalkers are responsible for the rider and the rider's safety by providing support as needed throughout the lesson and helping to facilitate instruction. If you would like to be a program volunteer, please read the Requirement & Eligibility FAQ below.

Program Volunteers

  • No. Previous horse experience is helpful, but not necessary. We provide orientation for all volunteers. At orientation our volunteers learn all they need to know about proper horse-handling techniques, safety precautions, and how to assist our instructors and the participants in our therapeutic riding and equine assisted programs.

  • In order to provide our therapeutic riding lessons and equine services, we must have a certain number of volunteers for each day. To provide consistency for our riders and with scheduling, we ask that lesson volunteers commit to weekly volunteering on the same day each week for the duration of a session. Our program sessions are 8-10 week long, year-round on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays in the late afternoon/early evening and on Saturday afternoons. See our calendar for session dates and holiday closures. You will receive reminder notifications for your volunteer days. If you have a conflict or need to cancel, we encourage you to do so as soon as possible so that we can find a substitute volunteer for that day.

  • No. Some of our volunteers continue with us for all sessions throughout the year, but it is not required. When you sign up to volunteer you sign up by the session. You will be contacted at the end of the session you sign up for. You have the option to commit to the next session, take a break and come back another session, be on our substitute list, or discontinue.

  • Once you are registered and scheduled to volunteer you will receive automated email and text reminders. If you are unable to attend, you can click on the cancel button or link or contact the office at (631)488-0142 or volunteer@ctreeny.org. Since we need a certain number of volunteers each day to provide our therapeutic riding and equine assisted programs, please give us as much notice as possible so we can find a replacement for that day.

  • Volunteering with our therapeutic riding program requires some physical activity, such as walking and jogging alongside the horse and participant.  

  • The minimum age for program volunteers is 14.

  • For the safety of our staff, volunteers, and riders orientation is required for all program volunteers. Orientation includes a tour of our facility, plus instruction in hands-on grooming and tacking, learning and practicing leading and side-walking, and an overview of safety procedures. You will also receive a link to watch a mandatory video prior to orientation. This video is approximately 20 minutes long. We offer orientation in small groups of applicants as needed throughout the year. After you apply, you will be added to our email list to be notified when our next orientation is scheduled.

    If you are a fundraising volunteer only and are not volunteering at the barn, orientation may not be required.

    Please add both info@ctreeny.org and volunteer@ctreeny.org to your contacts in your email program/application to ensure you receive our emails.

    1. Read all of the Requirements & Eligibility FAQs above.

    2. Fill out the application below.

    3. Watch a short orientation video and attend a barn orientation (approx 1 hour long).

    4. Sign up for a weekly time to volunteer for a session.

Requirement & Eligibility FAQ

If you have experience with fundraising, grant writing, or other nonprofit skills and would like to volunteer, please fill out the application below.

Fundraising Volunteers

Apply

If you are applying to be a program volunteer, read the answers to all of the Requirement and Eligibility FAQs above.

If you are eligible to be a program volunteer or you would like to be a fundraising volunteer, fill out the registration form below and click the Submit and Continue button to complete the Emergency & Medical Release Form. These forms are to be filled out by the applicant if 18 years old or over, or a parent/legal guardian if under 18 years old. You will be contacted by email after your application has been processed. If you have any questions contact us.

Volunteer Application

Registration Form