Kimberly Lind

Staff Member and Volunteer

Kimberly (Kim) Lind first came to Little Bit in December 2016, starting as a volunteer, and continuing her involvement as a volunteer leader and then as a schooler, helping to keep the herd physically fit. She became a staff member, handling horses in the Therapy department, in 2020. Among her many roles, she says her favorite was probably being a volunteer leader as she got to work with many of the same clients, some of whom still ride here today, and loves being able to watch “the kids and adults grow and strive and build their community within this community through therapy.” Kim’s favorite memories from her time at Little Bit include being a volunteer leader in the Adaptive Riding program and getting to have conversations with the riders. “Ted [Little Bit participant] and I missed a lot of instructions, we were often going the wrong way, but Ted will still yell at me from across the property and say hi and it’s fantastic.”

Kim has ridden her whole life, and volunteering at Little Bit felt like something she could help contribute to the world. “There isn’t actually a better place to do that then here,” says Kim.

As a handler in Therapy, Kim shares that Little Bit horse Lou has recently developed a way to tell her before a specific client has a seizure. He bumps her twice on her right arm and then tugs gently on her jacket, “and there’s a good twenty seconds before the seizure actually shows in his rider. . . as long as I’m paying attention and we catch it on time, it’s fun to have that communication with him.”

“When I go out into the world and I happen to be wearing my Little Bit logo, somebody will stop me,” Kim shares. “Little Bit seems to be able to not only build that community but share that community.” People like to ask Kim about current and past horses at Little Bit. “I haven’t been here quite ten years and people don’t believe me when I say that I don’t remember that horse, that horse was here before I was, and it’s special because they think I’ve been here the whole time, and Little Bit’s been here longer than that.” 

How has Little Bit changed over the years? “It’s bigger, there’s more horses, there’s more people. Most significantly, there’s more horses and a wider range. Everyone’s got their own personality.”

Kim also frequently volunteers to share her photography talents with Little Bit. “I’ve taken thousands of pictures here and it’s been a joy to do it. It makes me extremely happy to go back and look at how far people have come, and how far horses have come, and all of those relationships they’ve built.”

Find more 50th anniversary stories HERE.