Location: East Peoria, Illinois, United States
Central Illinois Riding Therapy (CIRT) is a nonprofit therapeutic riding organization in East Peoria, Illinois, serving Tazewell County and surrounding communities since 1983. The program was launched when a group of people from Peoria and Tazewell counties came together to discuss the possibility of a handicapped horseback riding program for the area, received seed funding from 4-H, and held its first classes that October.
More than four decades later, CIRT operates under a 4-H 501(c)(3) charter in accordance with PATH International guidelines, serves riders from age 4 into their 70s, and is supported by approximately 100 volunteers each season.
About This Program
CIRT’s mission is direct and enduring: to promote the well-being of persons with disabilities through the provision of horseback riding and related activities in a safe and enjoyable atmosphere designed by professionals and implemented primarily by volunteers. That last phrase is important — CIRT’s model puts volunteers at the operational heart of the program, trusting trained community members to carry out much of the work that makes each lesson possible.
Weekly therapeutic riding lessons are offered five days a week, Monday through Friday, from April through December, weather permitting. Each lesson is individually tailored to the rider’s physical, mental, emotional, or behavioral needs. The program’s therapeutic goals include enhancing physical and mental skills, aiding mobilization, promoting socialization and communication, and building independence and self-confidence.
Program Director Jenna Walker has described the particular value of the horse’s movement for riders who use wheelchairs or walkers: the gait of a horse at the walk most closely mimics the movement of human walking, making it uniquely impactful for participants who do not otherwise experience that biomechanical pattern. That foundational insight — that riding is not merely recreation but a form of neuromotor stimulation unavailable in other therapeutic contexts — shapes how CIRT designs its programs and communicates their value to families and referring professionals.
Scholarships are available to support riders with financial need, funded in part through events such as the annual Pony Express 5K and 1K race. Scholarship funds go toward adaptive equipment purchases and horse care costs alongside direct rider support.
Services Offered
- Therapeutic horseback riding (individualized, Monday through Friday, April–December)
- Recreational horseback riding
- Horse care and stable activities
- Horse shows and special events
- Scholarship program for riders with financial need
- Volunteer training and program
- Videotaping of classes and events
Who They Serve
Central Illinois Riding Therapy may be a good fit for:
- Children, youth, adults, and veterans ages 4 and up with disabilities
- Individuals with mental disabilities
- Individuals with physical disabilities
- Individuals with emotional or behavioral disabilities
- Individuals with social challenges
- Veterans
- Residents of Tazewell County and surrounding central Illinois counties
Facility and Setting
CIRT is located at 305 Neumann Drive in East Peoria, Illinois, in Tazewell County, across the Illinois River from Peoria. The facility operates seasonally from April through December and is staffed by a professional program director and approximately 100 trained volunteers who assist with riding lessons, fundraising events, and special programs.
- East Peoria, Illinois location (Tazewell County)
- 305 Neumann Drive, East Peoria, IL
- Seasonal programming: April through December, Monday through Friday
- PATH International guidelines
- Operates under 4-H 501(c)(3) charter
- Approximately 100 active volunteers
What Makes Them Unique
CIRT’s 40-plus-year history as a community-rooted program in central Illinois is its most significant distinguishing feature. Founded in 1983 with seed money from 4-H and still operating under a 4-H nonprofit charter, the organization reflects the deep civic tradition of rural Illinois volunteer culture.
The program has survived and thrived not through institutional funding but through consistent community investment — approximately 100 volunteers per season who make five-days-a-week programming possible.
The explicit commitment to riders throughout the lifespan — from age 4 to those in their 70s — also reflects a program philosophy that disability does not have a expiration date, and that the benefits of therapeutic riding are relevant across the full arc of human experience.
For families in the Peoria-Tazewell area of central Illinois seeking a long-established, volunteer-centered, PATH-guided therapeutic riding program, CIRT has been the regional answer to that need for more than four decades.