By Anna Faller — Meet Wiingash, a Colorado mustang helping veterans and families heal in Northern Michigan at the Traverse City nonprofit Peace Ranch.

By Megan Kelto — Peace Ranch, the Traverse City-based nonprofit that supports people healing from trauma and addiction through experiential equine therapy, recently received a donation of land – and a special, new resident horse.

By Jillian Manning — 2023 marks the tenth year of the Northern Express Fascinating People list, and as we looked back through the archives, we were blown away by the 180 people we had featured over the years.

By Lauren Creighton and Josh Monroe — April is Child Abuse Prevention Month and Peace Ranch in Traverse City has teamed up with the Traverse Bay Children’s Advocacy Center to help sexual assault survivors. The center has helped more than 3,000 kids with free counseling since opening their doors in 2010.

By Adam Bartelmay — A horse farm in Northern Michigan that specializes in equine assisted counseling and education is looking to expand its services to include more programming for veterans. Peace Ranch near Traverse City recently hired a program director with 25 years of experience in the U.S. Army.

By Laura Michels — Fifty years ago, Allen Watts served as a sniper for the United States Army during the Vietnam War. Five decades passed but the impact remains. Watts goes to Peace Ranch, a horse ranch about 10 miles south of Traverse City. Here, horses and humans heal each other, according to ranch staff.

EAP is an alternative mental health therapy for PTSD facilitated by a Master’s level therapist, an Equine Specialist with equine expertise and horses. EAP is experiential, hands-on, typically takes place in nature, and does not rely on talking.

At Traverse City’s Peace Ranch, which provides equine-assisted therapy to people of all ages needing mental health services, the pandemic brought cancellation of fundraising events but a swell in clients as the ranch took on people that state and local mental-health workers were prohibited from meeting with in person.

It’s known for its equine-assisted therapy for people in need of mental health services. Peace Ranch in Grand Traverse County has been deemed an essential service during the pandemic for kids in foster care to adults needing trauma therapy.

9&10 News is your Veterans Resource Station. This month, we’re talking about a nontraditional way to help treat post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD Some estimates show upwards of 20% of veterans suffer from some form of it.

9&10 News’ On The Road Crew, Gabriella and Stephanie, show you around the ranch and explain more about what services Peace Ranch offers.

Peace Ranch is an experience with a tranquil feel that immediately overcomes you when you walk onto the grounds in Hoosier Valley, just outside Traverse City. “We provide experiential therapy for people who have trauma, and we use horses in therapy, and that’s what makes it a little bit unique,” says Jackie Kaschel, the executive director and founder of Peace Ranch.

Eagala will receive $637,700 to fund services shown to improve mental and emotional health of veterans and service members across the United States. This funding, provided by the VA Adaptive Sport Grant (ASG), will serve veterans and Military servicemembers from Oct 2019- Sept 2020 through equine-assisted psychotherapy.