Aligning Military’ Strengths with Horses’ Freedom for Healing
Soul to Soles Connection, a 501 (c) 3 organization, is dedicated to reducing the impact of trauma in America’s active-duty military, Veterans, and their families.
Soul to Soles Connection provides FREE ground-based mental health services, with horses, at our farm in Mooresville, NC. America’s service members, Veterans and their families have made innumerable sacrifices for our Freedoms. We never turn away someone who has the courage to ask for help. Participants, suffering from trauma, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) or Military Sexual Trauma (MST), are offered the time to heal and overcome challenges. Clients are supported by our professional facilitation team – a licensed mental health professional, a certified equine specialist, and our horses.
We honor all by providing a supportive haven, where concerns and struggles are explored and resolved. The experiential nature of working with horses, engages the active and retired military in their own healing process, reaching solutions that meet them squarely on their own terms. This approach reduces the symptoms of trauma, while rediscovering confidence, compassion, and trust.
Here’s why our program is valuable for service members, Veterans and their families:

NOVEL & ENGAGING
The non-traditional setting helps service members move beyond the perceived stigma that can be associated with talk-only therapy and office visits.

BREAKTHROUGHS
These highly-in-tuned animals offer safe reflection and compelling feedback for fears and anxieties that military clients may be facing. In the hands of our professional facilitators, the horses’ unique sensitivity can help clients understand their own internal processes more readily than hours of talk.

HERD DYNAMICS
Horses live in herds. Herd dynamics can help clients understand their own lives. Observing the dynamics of the herd can help clients better understand the dynamics of their own family, military unit, and community. This provides another positive model for collaboration, support and trust.

FOSTERS RESILIENCE
Life is about experience and doing. Our work provides opportunities for service members and their families to discover their resources and strengths. They can overcome perceived obstacles to change and grow in their unit, communities, and homes. Clients challenge themselves in activities that remove the perceived stigma associated with traditional talk therapy.
ON THE RADIO:
PUTTING THE PIECES BACK TOGETHER PODCAST – EPISODE 17: KATIE STANKIEWICZ WITH SOUL TO SOLE CONNECTION
Putting the Pieces Back Together is a radio show hosted by Veterans and seeks to provide a space where Veterans and communities can connect, be heard, grow, heal, and ultimately put the pieces back together. Join John Gallina and Brad Borders of Purple Heart Homes every Tuesday morning on Putting the Pieces Back Together!
Watch Eagala Therapy Leaders Meet with Congress
“In the Horse Capital of the World, horses are integrated into most aspects of life, whether for work on a farm, entertainment at Keeneland, or just part of a family as a pet. So, it’s only natural they find their way into the field of health.
“One thing about our veterans is that with PTSD, they are hyper-vigilant to everything around them but it’s difficult to stay in the moment,” CEO and Co-Founder of Acres for Life Therapy and Wellness Center Lynn Moore said. “So, they can learn from those horses about what it’s like to be able to be calm, be present.”
DONATE TO SOUL TO SOLES CONNECTION
100% of your generous donation goes towards the mental health treatment of our service members and their families!