How would you like the opportunity to be a part of the most magical day of someone’s life? Well, here it is. Most of us have had the opportunity to enjoy an evening out on the town showing off our best finery at least once in our lives, but the teens who attend Jessie Baker School have never had a prom of their own … until now.

Jessie Baker School serves students with special needs from ages 3 to 22. It was the first public school for children with severe disabilities in the state of California. On Sunday, October 17th the students from their upper division will be putting on all their sparkle and glitter to attend the first-ever Jessie Baker Prom at the Hyatt Regency Ballroom (donated for the evening), and they need your help to look and feel their best.

We need hairstylists, manicurists and estheticians to help primp and prepare our students for their very special evening. Volunteers will be needed in the early afternoon at Jessie Baker School and you will need to bring all your own supplies. Donations of beauty supplies, formalwear, and accessories are still being accepted, and whatever is not used this year will go into a resource closet so that they can make the prom a yearly tradition. Chaperones are also needed at the event.

Please contact Project R.I.D.E.’s Volunteer Coordinator to inquire about how you can be of assistance for this very special event. THANK YOU Elk Grove for all your support for people with disabilities in our community!

Save the date now, tell your out-of-town family to book their flights today. Trust us – You do NOT want to miss the biggest, best Crab Feed on the West Coast. It’s the one you’ve heard about, the one in the barn, the one that makes people’s mouth water when they talk about it. The one with the delicious salad and pasta, the gigantic prawns and pound after pound after pound of decadent crab.

Be there.

January 15th 2011

@ Project R.I.D.E.

We will need volunteers, raffle and auction prizes and more.
Stay tuned for details!

Come on down and get dusty with us!
Barn Work Days are lots of fun and everyone is welcome. Please bring:

• Your own work gloves
• A water bottle
• Any cleaning or gardening tools you can lend for the day, including but not limited to:
• Rakes
• Shovels
• Brooms and dustpans
• Mops
• Tree or bush trimmers
• Hoes
• Spades
• Cleaning sprays or liquids
• In short, anything that would be useful inside or outside a barn when trying to make it SPARKLE

All ages and abilities are welcome, kids under 14 please bring an adult with you * great for groups * pre-registration is required, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator.
(916) 685-7433 or volunteer@projectride.org

How does a day of good-old-fashioned hard work, fresh air and sunshine on a 52-acre horse ranch sound to you? If this is your idea of fun, you’re not alone. Last year dozens of volunteers joined us to help clear pastures of overgrowth and rocks, cut weeds and fill two dumpsters with remodeling debris. They also enjoyed a delicious barbecue lunch and spent plenty of time socializing with our horses, goats and other friendly animals. This year we will have plenty of fun and satisfying chores to work on, from horse stalls and barn walls to pastures, and we would love for you to join us.

What to Bring
Please bring your own gloves and any gardening or cleaning tools you own, as we won’t have enough for everyone. Shovels, rakes, brooms etc are always useful. Long sleeves and long pants will keep your skin from being scratched by branches and weeds. You will definitely need sun protection and a personal water bottle. Bring a sack lunch if you keep a special diet, or simply enjoy tasty treats prepared by our staff.


Who Should Attend
This is a wonderful opportunity for youth who might be too young to work in our lessons but wish to spend time volunteering for a good cause, so please do bring the whole family as long as they are prepared to get dirty and work hard! Children under 14 must bring a supervising adult with them. New volunteers who have not assisted with us before must bring a completed Volunteer Application, and all volunteers should be aware that there are additional potential risks and hazards present on a working ranch, so parents must carefully supervise small children. This is a great opportunity for service groups as well but please contact us as space is limited and we can only absorb so many volunteers at this site.

Disney Day
This opportunity does qualify for the Disney Give a Day, Get a Day program. Please be certain to set up the correct dates and times for this event on your volunteering website on Disney.com so that we may credit your hours appropriately.The Disney Day program is now discontinued due to overwhelming interest so if you have not already signed up it is unfortunately too late.

Location and Directions
Project R.I.D.E. Ranch
11800 Giusti Road
Herald, CA 95638

From Elk Grove and Sacramento:
Take Highway 99 South to exit 277, the Twin Cities Road/Jackson/Hwy 104 exit.
Turn left from freeway onto Stockton Blvd and left again onto Hwy 104/Twin Cities Road, continuing for 9.3 mi. You will see the twin towers of Rancho Seco in the distance.
At Clay East Rd, you will veer slightly right instead of following Twin Cities to the left. Clay East Rd is a small street with a one-way stop sign and signage that can be difficult to see, so keep an eye on your mileage gauge to determine when it will be coming up.
Your first right will be Giusti Rd and our ranch is on the right side.

How to Sign Up
Please contact our Volunteer Coordinator to reserve your space by calling us at (916) 685-7433 or emailing volunteer@projectride.org.

The third annual Challengers Car Club show benefiting Project RIDE was a big success! Thank you to our friends for producing another wonderful car show that raised funds for us to continue our special program.

Challengers club annual Classic Car Show benefiting Project RIDE! Located at the Project R.I.D.E. arena at 8840 Southside Ave. Raffles, music, treats to eat and new this year, a children’s carnival with games, crafts and even a special musical performance all presented by Project RIDE Summer Leadership Institute volunteers! FREE fun for the whole family! If you own a pre-1972 beauty you’d like to show off, registration is only $15 onsite from 8am to 10am. The show is 10am – 2pm.
2010 Car Show
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2009 Car Show
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We’re Number One!!!

THANK YOU to our volunteers, student riders, parents and friends who joined us for a beautiful sunny day celebrating Elk Grove’s western heritage. We were proud to share the stage with many wonderful local organizations, schools and even animals, but of course we happen to think our parade entry was the best. But don’t take our word for it – not only did we win first place in our division but this year we actually won the Barbara McDaniel Award for Best Parade Float!

In keeping with our parade theme ‘Oh, to be 10 again’, our “Dave’s Candy Shoppe” float highlighted favorite memories of childhood: bubbles, wheels and hula hoops, riding horses and of course most of all CANDY! Our sandwich-board wearing friends and cowgirls on skates gave parade viewers about 150 pounds of candy! Without the help of a small army of dedicated and creative individuals, we could not have participated in this year’s festival. Our deepest gratitude goes out to all of you – you know who you are! Stay tuned; more pictures coming soon.

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Save the date – our annual Trail Ride and Dinner Dance is coming soon! A full day of incredibly scenic trail riding, breakfast, lunch and dinner with dancing back at the barn featuring special presentations of “American Idol – Country Style” by our talented students.

Trail Ride & Dinner $100 (includes all 3 meals and trail ride)
Trail Ride Only $75 (includes breakfast and lunch)
Dinner Dance Only $35 (at the Project RIDE arena)
Breakfast Only $10 (at the Barton Ranch)

New this year – join us for breakfast at the lovely Barton Ranch. Perfect for those who enjoy great scenery but are unable to join us on the ride.

TRAIL RIDE INFORMATION
Note: You must bring your own horse to the trail ride.
Registration for the ride begins at 7:30 am at
The Barton Ranch
3830 Scott Road
Sloughhouse, CA 95683

View Larger Map

DINNER DANCE INFORMATION
Join us back at the Project R.I.D.E. arena for Dinner and Dancing featuring a very special presentation of “American Idol – Country Style”
Cocktail Hour 6:00pm
Dinner served at 7:00pm
Raffle, Silent and Live Auctions, Music and Dancing
8840 Southside Ave.
Elk Grove, CA 95624

Tickets are available at the Project R.I.D.E. arena, or by calling Jerry Strong 686-5880 or Chris Hansen 685-5550

Photo credit: 2009 Anne Marie Bond
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We like to think Carol Meador would be proud: over 700 guests joined us for our 4th annual Spaghetti Feed celebrating her life and service to our therapeutic riding program on November 7, 2009. They enjoyed a sumptuous dinner of spaghetti, salad and garlic bread, all hand-made by the talented people at Red Oak BBQ.

Games, Raffles, Prizes and More

Children of all ages played carnival games to win tickets to enter our children’s raffle. They enjoyed diving into a pile of hay to find prizes, fishing, basketball, and the popular “mystery box” that held surprising secrets of all sorts. One lucky little boy even walked away with a foosball table! The raffle and silent auction featured tables bulging with delights including a giant screen TV and commemorative 30 year anniversary belt buckles celebrating Project R.I.D.E.’s history in the Elk Grove community.

The Evening’s Highlights

Supervisor Don Nottoli presented a resolution honoring our organization’s 30 years of service to people with special needs, accepted by members of our Board of Directors and our Director of Operations Tina Calanchini. The event was made especially festive by the bouncy tunes of Valley Fog, an outstanding local cover band with a wide and upbeat repertoire that kept everyone’s feet tapping all night. We were especially pleased that some of our horseback riding students were able to attend, and many of our regular volunteers enjoyed an evening off while enjoying their dinner, served by attentive volunteers from Elk Grove High School Future Farmers of America and Pleasant Grove High School Key Club students. In addition, the Master’s Commission, the Cosumnes Services District Fire Department, The Elk Grove High School Do-Gooder’s Club, students from Sacramento State University and a small army of extremely dedicated individuals worked behind the scenes and at the event to make it such a resounding success.

We could not have produced such a wonderful event without the constant support of our dedicated volunteers, donors, our all-volunteer Board of Directors and all of our generous guests who came to celebrate with us and support our program. We are especially grateful for your support in these difficult economic times. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you.

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Project RIDE raises nearly $1,000 to fight Autism!

At Project R.I.D.E. we are especially concerned about Autism. Many of our students have diagnoses of Autism Spectrum Disorder, a lifelong affliction that affects social interaction and learning skills for more and more children and adults each year. That’s why we put together a crack team of volunteers to represent us in our stand to find a cure for Autism at this year’s Walk Now for Autism put on by Autism Speaks, a national advocacy organization.

Did you know that the statistics now show that 1 in 100 children will be diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum? That’s 1 in 100 kids who will have difficulty relating to others, communicating, and relating to the outside world which can be overly stimulating and often frightening to them. That’s why we felt it was important to support this event to raise funds for and awareness of this important issue, which is the fastest-growing developmental disorder in the US.

Our team not only raised funds and spread the word about the event, they also put together an informational, educational and most of all FUN presence at the Resource Fair, which featured 40 local vendors which offer services to people with Autism. Our volunteers created an inviting booth where children and passersby could play a fishing game, ride stuffed ponies, get a free farm animal tattoo and explore the wonders of the Mystery Box, a sensorial experience where visitors would guess by feel at the horse-related contents of a box into which no one could see. The walk route was brief and scenic along the Sacramento Riverwalk to the Money Store Ziggurat and back to Raley Field. The weather was perfect and the mood was upbeat. Local dignitaries included Mayor Kevin Johnson and Representative Doris Matsui as well as Geoffrey the Toys R’ Us Giraffe, who led the walk.

The event attracted over 7,000 people in the Sacramento area concerned about Autism. In its second year in Sacramento, this event raised over $220,000 for scientific research into the causes, prevention and ultimately a cure for this disorder.

Raising this much even in a tough economic climate where all nonprofits are struggling for funds and the enthusiasm of our volunteers made us proud to be part of the generous heart of our community.

Click to enlarge photos

Go Team!

If you need tickets to our Crab and Shrimp Feed, please contact us to be placed on a waiting list in case more tickets become available. (916) 685-7433.

We think it’s the biggest and we know it’s the best CRAB FEED in town!

Repeat guests rave about the incredible pasta, hand-made salad, gigantic shrimp, fantastic bread, wine and of course let’s not forget the pound after pound of unending CRAB! Tickets sell out by mid-December every year, so don’t delay and get your crab feed tickets today! Get the best seats when you reserve your table for a party of six or more. The best food and service you’ve had all for a good cause, for only $40 in advance.

Volunteers, raffle prize donations, auction item donations and printing sponsorships needed!

NOTE: Volunteer positions fill months in advance * Awesome team-building volunteer opportunity for groups * Contact us today if your service group is interested! * All proceeds benefit Project R.I.D.E.’s therapeutic horseback riding program for people with special needs

Call now (916) 685-7433 or email ride@projectride.org for more information or to be placed on our mailing list.