Location: Beulah, Colorado, United States
Bits of Freedom is a nonprofit therapeutic riding program based in Beulah, Colorado, serving individuals of all ages and abilities in Pueblo, Fremont, and Otero Counties in southern Colorado.
Founded and led by Michelle Even, a PATH International Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor, the program was established to make equine-assisted activities accessible to children, youth, and adults with special needs in a region with limited access to specialized services. Bits of Freedom is a PATH International member center and commits to ensuring that finances are never a barrier to participation, offering scholarships to qualifying families.
About This Program
Bits of Freedom was built on the belief that horses have the ability to meet people where conventional approaches cannot. Michelle Even came to therapeutic riding through a lifetime with horses combined with direct experience serving children and adults at Soaring Eagles Center for Autism and Disabilities, where she saw firsthand what equine-assisted activities could accomplish. She became PATH certified in October 2019 and launched Bits of Freedom to extend that work into the broader Pueblo region.
The program offers both private and small group therapeutic riding sessions in one-hour and half-hour formats, tailored to each participant’s individual needs, capabilities, and goals. Lessons are designed for individuals ages four and older and are structured around building horsemanship skills alongside the physical, cognitive, emotional, and social benefits that come from working with horses. While some riders work independently, others are supported by sidewalkers and a horse leader, with the level of assistance matched to each rider’s needs.
Beyond mounted work, Bits of Freedom incorporates grooming and tacking into the session experience, giving participants hands-on engagement with the horses that develops responsibility, patience, and sensory awareness. The program also has a literacy initiative as part of its broader programming, reflecting an interest in educational outcomes alongside therapeutic ones.
Volunteers are central to how Bits of Freedom operates, with over 2,000 volunteer hours contributed annually. Volunteers assist with horse care, leading during sessions, and supporting participants, and the program treats this involvement as both a service and a community-building opportunity.
Services Offered
- Therapeutic riding (private and small group sessions, 30 and 60 minutes)
- Equine-assisted activities
- Grooming and tacking instruction
- Literacy program
- Outdoor equity and access programming
- Scholarship program for qualifying families
- Volunteer program
Who They Serve
Bits of Freedom may be a good fit for:
- Children, youth, and adults ages 4 and older
- Individuals with autism spectrum disorder
- Individuals with cerebral palsy
- Individuals with Down syndrome
- Individuals with developmental delays or cognitive disabilities
- Individuals with visual or hearing impairment
- Individuals with traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury
- Individuals with physical disabilities affecting balance and coordination
- Individuals with emotional or behavioral challenges
- Individuals with learning disabilities
- Families in Pueblo, Fremont, and Otero Counties seeking accessible equine services
Facility and Setting
Bits of Freedom operates in Beulah, Colorado, a small rural community in the foothills southwest of Pueblo. The mountain setting provides a natural, open environment that supports the program’s outdoor equity philosophy and gives participants access to the kind of outdoor experience that many in underserved communities rarely encounter.
The program serves a three-county region and is designed to be accessible to families across a wide geographic area.
- Beulah, Colorado location (Pueblo County)
- Serving Pueblo, Fremont, and Otero Counties
- Rural foothills setting
- PATH International member center
- 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
- Volunteer-supported programming
What Makes Them Unique
Bits of Freedom is a small, community-rooted program in a part of Colorado that sits well outside the reach of larger urban therapeutic riding centers. Its commitment to serving three counties across southern Colorado, combined with its explicit scholarship program and no-cost-barrier philosophy, reflects an organization keenly aware of the access gap it exists to fill.
Michelle Even’s background — rooted in western horsemanship tradition and direct work with autism and disability populations — gives the program both credibility and cultural grounding in the Pueblo region. The addition of a literacy program and outdoor equity programming shows an organization thinking beyond the riding arena and toward the broader developmental needs of the communities it serves.
For families in rural southern Colorado who might otherwise have no meaningful access to equine-assisted services, Bits of Freedom is filling an important gap.