Dedicating the new multi-purpose training room at The Root Farm, from left to right: Kristy Nole, AVP Marketing and Communications First Source FCU; Gary Heenan, First Source FCU Board Member; John Calabrese, First Source FCU Board Member; Robert Nole, First Source FCU Board Member; Jeremy Earl, Executive Director, The Root Farm; Dean Kelly, First Source FCU Board Member; Bob Jubenville, First Source FCU Board Member; Mike Parsons, President and CEO, First Source FCU; Kathy Hartnett, Executive Director, Cerebral Palsy Association; Liz Crane, Executive Assistant, First Source FCU; Tom Neumann, EVP and COO, First Source FCU.

First Source donated a multi-purpose classroom at The Root Farm in Sauquoit, and attended the official opening ceremony. The Root Farm, in collaboration with Upstate Cerebral Palsy, recently opened a new, expanded facility, of which the classroom is a central part. Using space from Camp Ronald McDonald—and generous community support—the farm offers 112 acres for therapeutic and equine assisted activities, agriculture programs, and arts activities, along with vocational and recreational opportunities for children and adults of all abilities.

The equine program includes integrated, adaptive horseback riding lessons, hippotherapy, vaulting, and private horseback riding lessons. The agriculture program includes raising free range chickens, producing maple syrup and other maple products, managing bee hives for honey production, and cultivating more than four acres of property for growing vegetables and flowers within the next few months. Their arts and recreational programming includes day camps, swimming, hiking, camping, orienteering, snowshoeing, cross country skiing, and more.

“All that The Root Farm embodies was a perfect fit for First Source,” said Mike Parsons, President and CEO of First Source Federal Credit Union. “With education, therapy, and natural resources, The Root Farm is truly a wonderful community space, fulfilling needs for people of all abilities in a new way. When we heard what was in the works and saw the healing power of equine assisted therapy, we immediately asked how we could help.”

The result: The Root Farm multi-purpose classroom, currently used for meeting, planning, training, and equine program viewing.

“We are grateful to First Source for believing in, and contributing to, our vision for innovative programming at The Root Farm,” said Jeremy Earl, Executive Director of The Root Farm. “First Source was one of our first community partners for the construction of our new equine center, and has continued to support us as we moved our project from a dream to reality.”

To learn more or make a donation to The Root Farm, visit them on the web at www.rootfarm.org.