Harbor Light News

‘To share the love of the horse…’

Equestrian center just north of Harbor Springs continues its long history of horsemanship and community



Riding student, Emma Hull, prepares for her lesson on Rising Hope Equestrian Center’s pony, Mona. Good school horses make the best teachers. Rising Hope Equestrian Center believes that both horses and students deserve a solid foundation and a friendly place to learn and ride. (Photo by Emily Meier)

Riding student, Emma Hull, prepares for her lesson on Rising Hope Equestrian Center’s pony, Mona. Good school horses make the best teachers. Rising Hope Equestrian Center believes that both horses and students deserve a solid foundation and a friendly place to learn and ride. (Photo by Emily Meier)

Rising Hope Equestrian Center sits less than three miles north of Harbor Springs where the roads, Hoyt and Quick, meet. Pastures stretch out to blend with the horizon line. Horses of different size and shape graze under picturesque blue skies.

The sounds of town can’t be heard from here. Instead, crickets, cicadas and katydids create a melody. Bird songs, horse tails swishing at flies, and the occasional whinny add harmony. Some may pass by on their way too and from town without taking much notice of this bucolic scene, or hearing the change in tune from bustling town below to the quieter one sung here. Barns have been painted, signs have changed names, but there have been horses on this swath of land for years.

This 25 acre property has an equestrian history dating back to 1978 when Ceejay Heckenberg bought the land and started Black Forest Hall Farm. Under Heckenberg’s guidance, it became a wellknown and beloved riding stable that offered boarding, lesson programs, and pony camps. Black Forest Hall worked closely with Northwood University’s Equine Management Program allowing students to gain practical, hands-on experience as they learned about the business of caring for horses. It was always Heckenberg’s goal to teach students more than a proper seat. She believed that good horsemanship encompassed the day-to-day care of the horses, as well as a shared responsibility and commitment to each other and the community. Heckenberg has been quoted as saying, “When you live in a wonderful community, you want to be involved in giving back.”

Boarder Itty Bitty catching some late afternoon rays from her stall while she waits for her evening meal. Photos by Emily Meier

Boarder Itty Bitty catching some late afternoon rays from her stall while she waits for her evening meal. Photos by Emily Meier

In 2005, Heckeberg donated the land to the Little Traverse Conservancy. Now, Rising Hope Equestrian Center leases the land from the conservancy and is carrying on the legacy of horses, community, and giving back.

“We started this non-profit, Rising Hope Equestrian Center, with the idea that anyone and everyone should have the chance to learn to care for and ride horses,” said Marita Hackl, current board member and founding member.“It all began years ago with this idea and one horse in a friend’s backyard.”

Barn manager and lead instructor, Leah Keller, working with her highly sensitive horse, Jade. Teaching a horse how to line up along the fence in preparation to pick up a rider is a valuable skill.

Barn manager and lead instructor, Leah Keller, working with her highly sensitive horse, Jade. Teaching a horse how to line up along the fence in preparation to pick up a rider is a valuable skill.

Over the years, the organization has grown out of several of their previous places but finally found home here, in Harbor Springs.

“This location and facility is very special. We could never have afforded to build a place like this,” Hackl said. “The conservancy allowing us the use of this property is tremendous and we are very thankful and very grateful. There is a lot of wonderful history here and we’re happy to continue it.”

In that vein, Leah Keller, barn manager and head trainer, joined Rising Hope a little over two years ago. Keller was born and raised in the area and is a well respected fourth generation horse person. Keller’s ability to meet both horses and humans where they are, and help them learn and grow into the best version of themselves, is a skill very few have. It is rare to find a person so good with both horses and humans.

Barn manager and lead trainer, Leah Keller, celebrates a blue ribbon day with boarder Dorothy Walters and her horse, Legacy.

Barn manager and lead trainer, Leah Keller, celebrates a blue ribbon day with boarder Dorothy Walters and her horse, Legacy.

“We feel very blessed and fortunate to have her. She is very good at what she does, very good,” said Hackl.

At just 19-years old, Keller was hired as a stable hand at Bay Harbor. Within a month she was given the additional responsibility of teaching lessons and riding training horses. Soon she was helping start colts and restart problem horses. And not long after, she became barn manager. It was also there, that she was given the opportunity to ride in numerous clinics with some of the very best in all the various disciplines.

She has ridden with dressage coaches Theresa Doherty, Bettina Drummond, and Maryal Barnett and, also, with the likes of Peter Campbell, Randy Rieman, Buster McLaury, and Buck Brannaman. It was a tenday clinic in Sheridan, Wyoming on Buck Brannaman’s own ranch that Keller calls “life changing”. There, she deepened her knowledge of good horsemanship and the understanding of how proper groundwork translates to the saddle.

An early morning training session. Barn manager and lead trainer, Leah Keller works with horse, Jade. Building a relationship from the ground up creates a solid foundation for rider and horse. Photos by Emily Meier

An early morning training session. Barn manager and lead trainer, Leah Keller works with horse, Jade. Building a relationship from the ground up creates a solid foundation for rider and horse. Photos by Emily Meier

Good balance – the horses’ and the humans’

“So much of this type of horsemanship is about balance, the horses’ and the humans’,” Keller said. “Good groundwork prepares the horse for the things we ask them to do from their back. It’s getting to their feet and teaching them self- carriage. The more balanced a horse is, and the more in time we are with their feet when we ask them to do something, the more relaxed and willing the horse becomes.”

A balanced and relaxed horse is a horse that starts to trust their rider. And a horse that looks to their rider for confidence is a horse that becomes a true to joy to ride anywhere.

“When a horse’s attention is more focused on the rider than on the world around him then, you can ride into a busy show ring, through a herd of cattle, or into the middle of the woods and trust that in spite of all the distractions, if your horse startles or becomes nervous, he will check in with you first. He will recover from the startle without an overblown reaction because he’s begun to realize the rider has the skills to help him through it.” Keller said. “Good riding is building a relationship with the horse through a solid foundation of these skills.”

While most days one may see Keller in her roping saddle, she is well versed in all riding disciplines and usually starts new students in an English saddle.

“People may see me riding in a roping saddle and just assume I’m a western rider.” Keller said. “But one hundred percent of the time when I’m teaching a new rider how to ride, I’m teaching them in an English saddle because I want them to learn balance and how to post.”

But before anyone is allowed to climb up on the back of a horse, Keller believes they need to be comfortable with the horse from the ground.

“I always start on the ground. If a person isn’t comfortable leading a horse into the barn, grooming them, tacking them up, or leading them around the arena, then they have no business getting on a horse’s back.”

Keller has a way of making students comfortable. Knowledge is the key to combating fear and insecurity. Whether it’s a horse or a human, Keller knows when to encourage them to step outside of their comfort zone and when to slow down and offer a bit more information.

Dorothy Walters boards her horse, Legacy, at Rising Hope and has witnessed the change in her own horse under Keller’s tutelage.

“Words cannot describe the change in my horse, Legacy’s, behavior. Leah has taken a fearful, pushy, and, at times, explosive, dominate mare and helped her become a well mannered, trusting, and respectful horse and companion. Leah works with the mind of the horse.” Walters said. “I can’t tell you the number of trainers that were unable to reach Legacy and advised me to sell her. Leah won’t give up. It’s her calling.”

It’s quite something to witness such a change in a horse. Today, Legacy is a calmer and less worried horse.

“That’s the thing about horses. 10, 12, 13 years old and people say, ‘oh they’re set in their ways now. They’re a bad horse.’ but that just isn’t true.” Keller said. “Legacy is a very sensitive horse. She’d built in a lot of braces to protect herself from the world and people she didn’t trust. I restarted her from the ground up. Once she learned that she had to respect me but that I wasn’t going to be mean or unfair, her demeanor changed.”

Keller creditsWalters for trusting her with Legacy.

“Dorothy one hundred percent trusted that what I was doing with her horse was what was needed.”

And now, Legacy can even be trusted with the most precious of riders, Keller’s own son Silas. As she talks about Legacy’s explosive behavior in the past, she plops her almost three-year-old son atop the large black beauty of a horse. He giggles and Legacy yawns. This is proof that with patience, consistency, and the right hand, there is hope for any horse.

“My goal is always to leave behind a bit of peace for the horse,” Keller explains. “And I want students to understand how harmonious the relationship between the horse and rider can be. I want them to see that they can accomplish their riding goals without nasty bits and tie-downs. Anything can be done in a simple snaffle bit.”

…Here to teach good horsemanship and responsibility

It seems that Keller is a good fit for Rising Hope Equestrian center as her goals align with those of this organization.

“While we are a lesson facility open to the public, we are not a facility where you come jump on a horse, yank on his mouth, yell ‘giddy up’ and take off on a trail,” Hackl stresses. “We are here to teach good horsemanship and responsibility.”

Rising Hope has a handful of instructors who share in the teaching responsibilities. Every age and every level of rider is welcome.

“Whether you’ve ridden once, a hundred times, or never–you just need a pair of jeans and the will to learn,” said Keller.

The barn is equipped with riding helmets, boots and even breeches for people to use while on the premises. There is a scholarship program, which helps make lessons more affordable for those who have a real interest in learning to ride and care for horses. Both adults and children can apply for scholarships.

The atmosphere is open and friendly. The barn has a comfortable feel. And, because it is a non-profit, everyone chips in to take care of chores. From cleaning pastures and fixing fences to sweeping aisles and feeding horses, everyone feels a responsibility to this place and the horses.

“It’s a friendly place,” Walters says, “where western and English riders alike come to together to share the love of the horse.”

This non-profit is a worthy one in which to invest time and donations. It’s a place that believes in the stewardship of land and the importance of community. Rising Hope Equestrian Center is a good fit for this special plot of land.

To find out more about instructors, horse shows, and upcoming clinics. Check out theirWebsite: RisingHopeEquestriancenter.com and their Facebook and Instagram.

To learn more about Leah Keller’s training visit her Facebook and Instagram pages: LK Horse sense (Emily Meier is a freelance writer with deep connections to this community.)