2024 Free Rein Foundation Cattle Baron’s Ball Honoree, Dr. Carole Harris
“Horses are great for our mental health,” claims Dr. Carole Harris. Her discovery of how equine therapy helps others break free from their mental and emotional limitations has been transformational for her clients, our Southern California community, and in her own life.
At the age of 8, Dr. Carole recalls how her identical twin sister, Mary, wanted a horse, which made her want one as well. Mary would go on to dedicate her life’s work to the care of horses as the owner and president of the Huntington Central Park Equestrian Center (HCPEC), while Dr. Carole’s path led to her caring for people. By combining their passions and expertise, Free Rein Foundation, originally called Horse Nation, was born with a mission having “twin” peaks – healing and helping horses and humans.
In college, Dr. Carole was unsure of what would be the right calling for her until walking into a psychology class, which led to a 35-year career in psychotherapy. With a busy job and a young family, she had little time for horses. That changed in 2010 with a phone call from her sister.
“Mary asked me to come with her to pick up some horses in Fontana that needed rescuing. There were 40 thoroughbreds that this guy was syndicating and who was in trouble with the federal government for fraud. He left them with a poor woman who also couldn’t afford to feed or care for them. It was really sad. Their ribs were sticking out, their hair was falling out, and they looked so hopeless. I remember walking into her very dark barn with no windows and finding a gray horse in a back stall. I didn’t have a halter, just hay twine, but I placed it around his neck and he let me lead him out and onto a trailer. It was as if he knew he was going to a better place. After that we began rescuing a lot of horses. Not all of them made it, but that one was adopted and had a happy ending.”
Pairing Rescued Horses with People in Need
“Around that time I started thinking, ‘Why not pair horses with some of my clients?’ Kids and teens don’t want to sit across from an adult in an office, but horses are a way to get them to open up and talk. I was introduced to EAGALA (Equine Assisted Growth And Learning Association), started going to their training sessions, and adopted their methods. Mary built the pastures and let me do equine therapy there, and in 2014 we formed Horse Nation as a non-profit to help horses, kids and others from underserved areas. We did everything for free and put a lot of time into it because we believed in what we were doing.”
Dr. Carole remembers seeing the potential of equine therapy in some of her first clients’ experiences: One was a 7-year-old girl whose mother was having trouble with her. “It was fun to see this tiny person trying as hard as she could to put on a horse halter,” recalls Dr. Carole. “Her determination showed me she would grow up to be a person with drive, who wouldn’t just give up when things got tough.
“Another early client was a military man. He came out of the pasture telling me how the horse did the same thing that his dad did whenever he talked about his military experience – his dad would turn his back on him. We talked about what he wanted from his dad. I sent him back into the pasture, and this time the horse turned toward him. By knowing what he wanted and approaching the horse with different body language, he had a different result. After the session, he knew what he wanted in his relationship with his dad, and that by approaching him differently, he would get a better result. He let his dad know, ‘Dad, I want you to be proud of me.’”
Equine therapy soon became a pillar of her practice, with nearly one-third of her clients coming to the pasture and an office in the Red Horse Barn. In 2019, following a bout with breast cancer, she decided it was time to retire and moved to Maui to be with her kids and grandkids. Several times a year she returns to Southern California to see family and friends, and to help provide oversight as a Free Rein board member.
Looking ahead, Dr. Carole hopes to see both Free Rein Foundation and the HCPEC continue to welcome more of the community and serve more horses and humans. “It’s important for the City to see the great work being done here by Therapeutic Riding Center, which serves those with physical disabilities; by Free Rein, in the mental health and well-being arena; and to realize what a jewel this place is.”
Dr. Carole insists on sharing the spotlight as a 2024 Cattle Baron’s Ball honoree with other deserving individuals – especially Justine Makoff, co-founder and Free Rein Foundation president. “Without Justine’s passion for the horses, caring deeply about the kids, and marketing expertise, we wouldn’t be here,” she says. “Our community owes her so much. I feel she is who we should be honoring!”
A Family Legacy to Carry Forward
Dr. Carole’s grandfather and her dad, the late Bill Harris, formed the Brethren Community Foundation to support low-income youth and seniors needing financial assistance in Long Beach and Orange County. “He lived a big life. Even near the end of it when he had Alzheimer’s, if you asked my dad how he was doing he would say, ‘Livin’ large.’ The Living Large Legacy was started by my mom to fund research into this disease so that others don’t suffer with it.”
As a major sponsor of the 2024 Cattle Baron’s Ball, Dr. Carole chose to take the spotlight off herself to honor her dad. She recalls, “He was always supportive of what his kids wanted to do, and he made me who I am today. He helped Mary build the Equestrian Center, and as a silent partner who gave her a good business sense, he helped make it successful. He was also an identical twin, and he and his brother were so close they could read each other’s thoughts. He was an amazing man who left a legacy for us all to live up to.”
