Our Story
How God brought about the Ranch from humble beginnings to a thriving, growing ministry.
A LOOK BACK
Humble beginnings
The first conversation about Wings of Hope Ranch began around a kitchen table during a play date. While visiting with friend Jane Yancey, Alison Boyd shared her dream of starting a program that would nurture children and neglected horses through a Christian ministry. Jane shared her life/work experience as a victim advocate in a variety of settings, cheered her on and told her, “Just do it!”
Alison and Jane then took a trip to Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch in Bend, Oregon that would prove to be the model for Wings of Hope. Once they returned home, they came to the realization that to make this dream a reality there were several basic things they would need…. like land, barn, tack, and horses…none of which they had at the time. But those “minor” things did not stop Jane and Alison … or God.
He kept putting the puzzle pieces together one at a time. First, by introducing Jane and Alison to Cindy Colon who offered her home and horses to start the pilot program. Then, Cindy introduced them to her friend Betty Kniesche who had a ranch nearby to grow into. The best part was Betty ran the library at First Baptist Church in Ashland for many years. Betty had already read the book Hope Rising by Kim Meeder in her library, so when they approached Betty about using her ranch for this type of ministry, the Lord had already paved the way for her to say yes!
And He has been faithful to grow the ministry exponentially since then, bringing horses, volunteers, staff, and, most recently, a new Ranch.
