Deer Park horsewoman taught generations riding and respect: ‘There is always more to learn’

When it comes to horses, Sally Shepard notices the little things; the things on which no one else would pick up. Things like when a horse is hurting. Or lonely. Or might need help.

Shepard cares for around 40 horses at her horse boarding facility, Northwest Trails, in Deer Park. Every horse has a story, and Shepard lights up when she tells each of them.

“I think that a lot of people would get bored with it, but to me it’s not boring at all. Because there’s so much observation that needs to be done,” Shepard said.

Shepard doesn’t just board horses there. Her facility is also home to Caramel and Peaches, horses rescued by Higher Ground Animal Sanctuary, an organization based in Green Bluff. She’s trying to find them new homes, but she’s glad to know she’s been able to improve their quality of life.

Shepard first moved to the Spokane area in 1969 from a small rural community in Massachusetts, following in the footsteps of her brother who was serving at Fairchild Air Force Base.

But her path in her earlier years in the Inland Northwest was bumpy.

There was a period in her life, right after her husband left her, where she was lost, overwhelmed and didn’t know how she would take care of her teenage daughter or pay her bills. She’d been left with 20 acres, a couple of horses and no plan.

She started working a service job in town waiting tables, but she missed her land and felt like she needed to be home with her daughter.

Shepard decided to put her resources to use instead. She only had two horses at the time, but she would “borrow” some of her neighbors’ horses for trail rides or give group lessons. She said that she “just made it work.”

Whenever her business hit a bump in the road, and it seemed like things might not work out, she would say to herself, “Think of your options.”

The thought of having to work in town again was enough.

Horses became her life, and she’s been sharing her equestrian wisdom with Deer Park and surrounding communities ever since.

Shepard advised Robyn Moug, a clinical specialist in hippotherapy, on the handling and safety measures necessary for her hippotherapy program. Hippotherapy uses the horse’s movement to provide motor and sensory input by giving the rider the sensation of spatial movement. It is beneficial for those with conditions like autism, cerebral palsy and multiple sclerosis. Shepard helped by making sure horses were “under control and managed and moving correctly,” Moug said.

Shepard has also taught and impacted hundreds of kids with her annual 4-H camps that she ran for 30 years. Between trail riding and games, the camps taught students how to ride, the different styles of riding and the basics of horse care.

They began in the early 1980s on the Deer Park Fairgrounds in association with Spokane County 4-H. It was originally a weekend day camp, but Shepard said it was so much fun that they decided to make it an overnight, eventually moving it back to her property where she did weeklong camps until about a decade ago.

Shepard enjoyed “teaching the kids to be safe around the horses.”

Her aim was to teach students “to be more compassionate about their horse, that their horse wasn’t just a vehicle. That their horse had feelings and needed respect. That we needed to be respectful of how they felt.”

Shepard’s style is special because of her focus on not just technique, but also the relationship between the rider and the horse.

Shepard estimates that half of those who participated in her camps still make horses part of their life.

She still gets calls back from former campers saying thank you, which makes her think, “Man, that was 20 years ago, and I knew (little).”

Shepard is 79 but still striving to learn.

“I’m still a student,” she said. “There is always more to learn.”

Her horse camps changed lives. Campers scattered all across the country still connect with each other through their shared memories at camp.

“It was so fun; the kids had so much fun,” said Candy Yow, one of the other riding instructors.

Moug, who was also an assistant at the camp and whose sons attended it, said “it’s been like a second home” for her and her family. The campers learned so many life skills, “and they made lasting friendships, and I think that’s something our young people kind of miss.”

“I just can’t tell you what a wonderful experience that was. I mean, I just wish every child could do that.”

One of Shepard’s former students and campers, Aurelia Jones, took riding lessons from Shepard for many years.

The focus, she said, was “about communication with your horse.”

“Everything that she taught me, I still implement that in my riding today, and I’ve given a lot of riding lessons myself. Now I’m starting kids out when they’re just, like, super, super young and using all of the strengths that honestly, that she gave me,” Jones said.

“Sally has given to so many people in so many different ways, and I’m thankful for her.”

Shepard reflected on her life’s work in an interview last week as she stared out at her horses roaming the pastures of vibrant green grass dripping with dew drops.

“What more could you ask for?”