GARDINER — For the past 43 years, hundreds of horses have marched from Gardiner to the Jardine Rodeo Grounds (about five miles), and eight of those years has been to purchase track chairs for veterans and first-responders with disabilities.
Since 2017, the Hell's A-Roaring Horse Drive has honored veterans over Memorial Day Weekend, using the proceeds for Action Trackchair, a company that creates custom mobility chairs so those with disabilities continue outdoor recreation and activity.
According to 18-year-volunteer with the program, Bernadette Roach, the horse drive became a charity event in 2014. Roach says a few years later, the organization decided to honor veterans as the event always falls on Memorial Day Weekend.
"The fact that veterans have given us so much, and to be able to give anything back to them, you know to still be able to enjoy the type of life that they want to live, it's hugely important to just give back what little we can for these sacrifices that they've made for us," Roach said Friday over a virtual interview.
The proceeds for the horse drive go to purchase one to three track chairs. Track chairs, according to Roach, can cost anywhere from $2,000 to $2,500, as they allow complete mobility from the waist down.
"It gives them the ability to go outside and enjoy nature, and do things like that. And these track chairs enable them to go all over the wilderness, and still explore the things that they love to do," she said.
The Hell's A-Roaring Horse Drive is an all-day event on Saturday, with the horse's march starting at 2:00 p.m.
Tickets for adults are $25, tickets for children over seven are $20, and children under seven get into the event for free.
