Thurston County veteran opens new farm to provide equine therapy for military veterans and first responders

Susan Cliber has always been an animal person. It's in her DNA, passed down from her father, who instilled a passion for horses at the tender age of 2.

That passion was interrupted by another - service - which led Cliber to a 13-year career in the U.S. Army National Guard where she served in roles ranging from communications to field artillery.

Those years of military service, paired with raising a young family, didn't leave much time for anything else, but as the kids got older and her time with the National Guard ended, she naturally gravitated toward animals once again.

Her time as a participant-turned-instructor at the Yelm-based nonprofit Hope for Heroes Equine Therapy was when Cliber first saw "week one to week eight the change in people is just massively drastic" with equine therapy.

While working as an instructor, the intrepid equestrian noticed one area Hope for Heroes was missing: the family. So, she bought a farm in Yelm, right outside of Rainier, and that's where Stand Down Sanctuary and Farm began.

Cliber understood former military service members and first responders need an outlet for their trauma and stress but felt that including the family was an avenue for those suffering to reconnect with their loved ones in a healing-focused environment.

"You really can't lie to me about how you feel, because your horse will tell me," Cliber said. "And I tell people that all the time, 'It's OK. Whatever you're going through, whatever you're feeling right now - but here's how we can work through that for your horse,' and that translates into how it can help them personally, too."

Still in the early stages, Cliber has only hosted a few participants to date, including Paul, an Army Special Forces veteran who preferred not to disclose his surname for privacy concerns, and his son, Bodhi.

Paul, a South Carolina native, spent nearly two decades in the military with half of it coming in special operations. The high operational tempo led to him carrying "a lot of anxiety and stress" he learned to live with over time.

A 2019 conversation with a fellow soldier introduced Paul to equine therapy, and he thought about it in the following years but didn't have time to follow up until his career began to wind down.

At the twilight of his military service, Paul found himself at Hope For Heroes where he met Cliber. When she started Stand Down Sanctuary and Farm, he was excited for the opportunity to "come out here in a place and connect back to what I'm used to growing up with and share it with my son."

That connection was evident when Paul went to visit Stand Down on Wednesday, July 15.

While he is the veteran, his son, Bodhi, was without a doubt the pack leader as he ran from enclosure to enclosure checking on all the farm animals with dad in tow.

The duo started by seeing the goats before reluctantly visiting the horses as young Bodhi made sure no one forgot that he had come to see the chickens.

Cliber led them from animal to animal supervising as Paul worked with his son. Doing as any good instructor does, the farmowner stayed hands off until she was needed, ensuring that her students had as much bonding time as possible.

And that's the experience Cliber hopes to provide her clients: an hour outdoors with animals and family where kids can be kids and parents can be parents. An opportunity to forget about all the troubles of the past, present and future so veterans and first responders can heal surrounded by loved ones.

Visits to Stand Down Sanctuary and Farm are available by appointment only.

To book an appointment or learn more, visit https://standdownsanctuaryandfarm.com.

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