To the Circle of Hope Community,

It is with very mixed feelings that I share the news that Circle of Hope is ending operations, effective November 2, 2025. I am sad that we are closing and I will miss our volunteers, riders and their families. At the same time, as I look back on our 29 years, I know that we, including our volunteers, our families, myself and other instructors who worked with us over the years, helped so many and did a lot of good work.

The decision to close was not easy, but it is clearly the right thing to do. Our wonderful horses, Traveller and Lucy, have reached the end of their working lives. Traveller had already retired (several years ago) to another farm, but came back to us (along with the associated expenses for his care) earlier this year, adding to our financial burden. The loss of Papa in January was devastating and he left a big hole in our programming. We are just not in a position to buy and train new horses.

The new owners of Grand Jete Farm have been generous and wonderful in allowing us to maintain our operations in the barn and helping us in so many ways. Now we need to step aside so that they can organize their property as they envisioned and generate the income they need from the space we occupy.

Finally, it is time for me to retire. As the Executive Director of Circle of Hope since we began, I have put my life’s work into this extraordinary community. I am forever grateful to all of the riders, families, volunteers, board members and donors who have given so much to us. Together, through good times and challenges, we have kept Circle of Hope going as strong as we could. Now, at the confluence of many factors, we need to close our doors and keep Circle of Hope bright in our memories.

I thank you for being an important part of Circle of Hope.

Best regards,

Lesley Shear