With a Helping Hand from WoodmenLife, Cargo Ranch Has Embraced Mentorship for 17 Years

Cargo Ranch is on a mission to provide mentorship and ministry to the youth of Shawnee, OK.

WoodmenLife recognizes the value Cargo Ranch brings to the community and, over the years, has supported the nonprofit that helps kids build relationships by working with trained horses.

‘This Is What We’re Supposed to Do’

The story of Cargo Ranch first began when WoodmenLife members Carrie and Robert Carter purchased 40 acres of land just outside Shawnee.

After hearing about a similar ranch in Bend, OR, Carrie and Robert decided to create a nonprofit aimed at mentoring youth and training horses.

“My husband was just like, ‘Carrie, I think this is what we’re supposed to do. I think we’re supposed to take horses and offer that to our community,’” Carrie said.

The Carters, together with their friends Jeff and Debbie Goss, started the Cargo Ranch nonprofit in 2008.

A Day at Cargo Ranch

Carrie said the core of Cargo Ranch is its mentorship program for the kids in the community.

With around 50 volunteers and 40 youth, Cargo Ranch operates every Tuesday for about an hour-and-a-half of activities for mentors and mentees to complete together.

The day normally starts with the mentors and mentees completing a one-page devotional to discuss. Following that, everyone is tasked with a 15-minute chore around the ranch, such as writing thank-you notes to donors, picking up sticks, or weeding flowerbeds.

“Our program is free for all our families, so we like for them to put a little skin in the game,” Carrie said. “It helps them take ownership in the ranch itself.”

From there, mentors and mentees can choose their designated activity for the week: riding horses, fishing at the pond, completing art projects, or playing at the ranch’s playground.

“We just have various activities they can do while they are with their mentor,” Carrie said. “During that time, our mentors encourage them, listen to them, hear where they’re at, what they’re struggling with, and hopefully just love them well and let them know they’re seen and valued. It gives them a safe space to rest.”

Carrie said kids can participate in the program from age 7 until they graduate from high school.

“Our hope and our goal is that they’ll want to turn around and volunteer and plug back in,” she said.

A Helping Hand

Carrie said WoodmenLife Chapter 68 in Shawnee, OK, has been instrumental to Cargo Ranch over the years.

Recently, Chapter 68 made a $4,000 donation to the ranch, which Carrie said will be crucial in funding the horses’ winter hay supply.

“Chapter 68 used to help us put on a golf tournament for a number of years, and that money went toward building our meeting post where our kitchen is,” Carrie said. “Every year, we have a 5K and WoodmenLife always donates the water for that.”

The Carters have also been able to connect with local WoodmenLife members over the years of running Cargo Ranch, including some who have also provided hay to support the horses in the winter.

As a longtime WoodmenLife member, Carrie said she’s grateful to have the organization’s support as Cargo Ranch grows every year.

“Because we don’t charge anyone to go out to Cargo, we rely 100% on donations from the community,” she said. “Horses are expensive — to run a program that revolves around our horses is very costly. The fact that we have had WoodmenLife come alongside us and help provide feed for the winter has been huge.”

‘Sticking to Our Mission’

Carrie said the ranch’s next big goal is to raise money for a barn.

“The horses pasture in the field, and we’ve had to make makeshift corrals for when a horse is sick,” she explained.

“But, really, we’re just sticking to our mission — that’s the most important thing for us. We would rather have a quality program than some huge, crazy, big program.

“Meeting the needs of the kids and families in the community — that’s what drives our vision. We’re going to keep doing what we’re doing, regardless of what we have.”

Written by: Cheyenne Alexis, Communications Strategist

Read More

WoodmenLife Member Is Driven to Give Back to the Community

Virginia Chapter 89 Supports Children Aging Out of Foster Care

Georgia Chapter Shows Tireless Dedication to Community Service

WEB909