Program Information

The foundation program of the White Horse Youth Ranch (WHY Ranch) is unique in that it pairs one child, one horse, and one leader for each session. Our "one on one" learning environment is dedicated to restoring the heart, soul, mind, and strength of our kids. Our specialized environment is tailored for each child's specific needs. WHY Ranch gives disadvantaged youth the opportunity to experience the Wild West heritage of Las Vegas through our free Diamonds in the Rough after school program.

WHY Ranch will serve all children between the ages of 8 and 18. Roughly 80% of the kids we will serve are considered disadvantaged. To WHY Ranch, the word "disadvantaged" child takes on many shapes and forms: socio-economic; deprived of some basic necessity in life; experienced grief or loss; has suffered from a traumatic event or has no access to safe structured recreation. The remaining 20% of kids we will work with are simply kids who don't have access to horses through any other means. It has been our experience that as "healthy" kids play and grow beside "broken" kids, they are both encouraged to have a greater appreciation and understanding of others. It also brings joy to the spirit of wounded kids to believe they too can have hope for the future.

Our goal is to allow each child the opportunity to come to the Ranch twice a month. Each 90 minute session will consist of a chore being done and an optional riding lesson; the main goal of WHY Ranch is to offer mentorship, ranch-style activities, healthy friendships and horse rehabilitation involvement. Therefore, according to the staff member's discretion or the child’s wishes, they may take part in any number of alternate activities during their session, including ranch chores, crafts, games, etc.

Part of the focus of our program is to teach about our Nevada Wild West heritage. WHY Ranch is committed to supporting the history and culture of our community as well as keeping it alive by passing it down to future generations.