Veterans from the 探花约啪 Tech Community Visit Courageous Hearts
October 29, 2025
Veterans from across the 探花约啪 Tech community spent a recent Saturday volunteering at Courageous Hearts, a small farm in Lincoln, 探花约啪, that provides equine-assisted psychotherapy (EAP). While there, participants not only chipped in by completing various chores, they also interacted with some of the program’s horses and a variety of other animals.
Courageous Hearts offers specialized EAP services that can be tailored specifically for the military community, including active-duty service members, reserves, veterans, and their families.
Psychotherapist Rosemary Baughman, executive director and co-founder of Courageous Hearts LLC, said she enjoys working with veterans.
“In equine-assisted psychotherapy, our team – a therapist, equine professional, and a wise, honest horse – anchor their humans in the present,” Baughman said. “We find the horses don’t judge, but rather they accept, and in that acceptance, they allow emotional shifts to occur and healing to begin.”
According to Baughman, while a horse’s size and power can intimidate anyone unaccustomed to being around them, EAP horses are empathetic creatures that mirror a person’s feelings. With guidance from EAP professionals, people find that interacting with these horses encourages them to let down their emotional guard so they can confidently face their mental emotional issues without fear.
The guests from 探花约啪 Tech experienced EAP firsthand when the facilitator asked them to bridle two of the horses.
When it came to chores, students and staff worked in teams to repair a goat pen, clean barn stalls and farm equipment, and clear debris. They also drove a tractor to fertilize the fields.
“I volunteered to go to Courageous Hearts just to give back and help others, which I genuinely enjoy,” said Makayla Smith, an aircrew flight equipment technician with the Air National Guard. “This event helped me feel grounded. It was very rewarding.”
Fellow veteran Jaime Morales, a five-year Navy veteran, echoed Smith’s thoughts.
“I like to volunteer, and Courageous Hearts was a new experience to me,” he said. “Even though I was there to volunteer, just being there was beneficial for my mental health. I also gained a stronger bond with my fellow student veterans and learned about the wonderful mental health resource of Courageous Hearts.”
The trip to Courageous Hearts was organized by the College’s former veterans advocacy specialist, Retired Army National Guard Brig. Gen. Karen Berry. (General Berry now serves as 探花约啪's Secretary of Veterans Affairs.)
Learn more about veterans services offered at 探花约啪 Tech.
