As we moved along with our fundraisers, we also realized that Special Horses could fill an additional and different niche. With flooding of the Red River expected to reach epic proportions in North Dakota and Minnesota in April, 2009, Special Horses organized an emergency fundraising initiative to provide assistance to equines in need.

since we were not then 501(c)3, we assisted the Equine Sciences Department at North Dakota State University in coordinating incoming horses to the University from evacuated areas. We established a site where volunteers, businesses and individuals interested in donating hay, trailering horses or supplies or offering temporary housing could be placed on an emergency contact list, and a fund for the equine victims of the flooding was established in cooperation with North Dakota State University.

We realized that if we had been 501(c)3 at that point, we could have facilitated these efforts much more quickly.

And so we began to discuss this in earnest...