From left, Ed Dabney, Pierandrea Rebella, and Deenie McKeever. Photograph courtesy of McKeever’s First Ride and OPAF & The First Clinics.
McKeever’s First Ride™, the therapeutic horsemanship program of OPAF & The First Clinics, was recently a featured part of the 113th annual Verona, Italy, Horse Fair also known as Fieracavalli, held November 3-6. The event has been running continuously since 1898 and draws more than 250,000 attendees to the four-day festival that celebrates all things horse related.
Deenie McKeever, the program founder of McKeever’s First Ride, along with international horse trainer and clinician, Ed Dabney, introduced Italy to the program and to the benefits of equine therapies to anyone with a physical challenge. They, along with Italian equine experts, presented a 90-minute seminar with video from the recent clinics in Atlanta, Georgia. Luigi Fedeli and Pierandrea Rebella, both amputees from Italy, were demonstration riders. Franco Barbagallo served as their interpreter and event organizer in Italy.
Both McKeever and Dabney were interviewed by the national Italian television and gave overviews of what McKeever’s First Ride has accomplished in the United States.
