Horsing Around

Published June 10th, 2008
By Diane Feen

Stacy Gormley knew love when she saw it. It whipped by her at eight miles per hour with its long tail flapping in the wind. Although there were no marriage proposals, the young woman from Michigan was totally smitten.

It turns out that Gromley’s lover was a five-year- old stallion with the name Fidelis. To some people, the 1,200-pound animal was just a horse; to Gormley it was the beginning of a new life. “I flew to Germany with my father to see a horse that my mentor Christine Traurig picked out for me. She told my father that there were no limits to what I could do with the right horse,” said the 24-year- old psychologist and ace equestrian.

And Traurig, who was on the 2000 Olympic Dressage team, was right.

Gormley spent five years training Fidelis and traveling the country to horse shows and competitions. She lived in Wellington and spent her time surrounded by horses and horse people. In 2004 her hard work paid off. “I won the bronze medal at the Junior Olympics in Chicago. I got the highest free-style Dressage score in the nation,” said the Grand Rapids, Michigan native.

But it wasn’t long before fate intervened into the equestrian equation. At the age of 21 Gormley took on another task – that of foster parent. “I ran an emergency shelter for my church that took in children who had been abused or neglected. I realized then that a roof over their heads and food in their stomachs was not enough to help them heal,” she said.

So Gormley did what came natural for her. She took the kids (aged 4 to 14) to visit her horse Lily in Wellington. It was there that Gormley saw a transformation in the children she hoped to transform. “I recognized that being around Lily helped the children’s behavior and motivation. It also softened their hearts.”

Dream Plan

That’s all it took to set the wheels in motion for this FAU grad in child psychology. She immediately began researching equine therapy and augmented her original dream plan with one that included helping disadvantaged and abused children.

It also entailed hooking up the physical with the emotional. “I mixed my passion for horses, my love for kids, and my newfound faith and decided to start the Fidelis Foundation,” she said.

If you’re not familiar with the Fidelis Foundation (that is a 501C3 non-profit organization) it is a program that helps children develop relationships and riding skills as a means to a therapeutic end.  “We teach children about intimacy and trust by way of their relationship with horses. These children put up a wall because they have been hurt so much and a horse is able to penetrate that wall,” said Gormley.

She has also found that the positive relationship between the children and horses (as well as counseling) helped them to see a new model for what a healthy relationship should look like.

That’s what it did for Carrie. The young woman, who was grieving over the loss of her brother, began experimenting with drugs and staying out all night at parties. After working with Gormley, and developing a love for horses, the young woman gave up her self-destructive ways. “In one month Carrie committed to changing her life and now she volunteers with the foundation,” said Gormley.

To help with this ambitious undertaking, Gormley relies on the kindness of strangers. The Fidelis Foundation has a roster of volunteers and relies on donations to help pay expenses for the program (currently they are in need of a horse trailer, a truck pull, volunteers and a grant writer).

Why would a young woman from Michigan put away her domestic and equestrian dreams and spend all of her waking hours working with children? “The equestrian world is an aristocratic one - I was one of the only self-supporting people to make it to the top level. I had to work very hard to get there, but it taught me a work ethic and a realization that if you want something you have to go after it with your whole heart.”

So that’s what this young woman is doing. She spends most of her waking hours working with children, and at night she is often at board meetings for the Fidelis Foundation. But that hasn’t stopped her from creating another program that marries dreams with dressage.

“Rising Star”

“I started the Rising Star Program to help talented riders realize their dream to become an elite equestrian competitor. We take two girls a year and give them unlimited access to a horse, a trainer and a facility to develop their riding skills,” said the ambitious equestrian lass.

In the two years that the Fidelis Foundation has been in existence Gormley has worked with 1000 young people between the ages of 4 and 21. She’s not only made a difference in their world – but in hers as well.