Our Mission
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SheHerdPower is an organization dedicated to providing ground breaking rehabilitative services to survivors of sexual assault and abuse. As part of the foundation’s services, survivors participate in a multi-day program utilizing principles of Equine Guided Empowerment™ and Somatic Reprogramming™ to help survivors reclaim their voice after trauma. All services are completely free of cost to participants.
The partnership with horses is a defining characteristic of SheHerdPower’s approach to therapy. Horses have a unique ability to facilitate self-awareness, growth, and empowerment by providing an unfiltered reflection of our true self and a platform from which to rebuild trust, boundaries, and clear communication skills.
The foundation is in the process of gaining independent non-profit status and is currently fiscally sponsored by The Flag Foundation for Horse-Human Partnership.
For more about Equine Guided Empowerment™ and Somatic Reprogramming™ visit our program page.
“SheHerdPower allowed me to regain strength and autonomy, taught me to trust myself, and most importantly it showed me how to stay grounded. Horses are such beautiful and intuitive creatures and if you let them, they will teach you so much about the world around you.”
beginnings
Beth Behrs and Cassandra Ogier founded SheHerdPower in 2016 with an inaugural program at Flag Ranch - a horse rescue set on 90 acres of rain-fed grasslands in California's gold country east of San Francisco.
Their shared passion and desire to provide unprecedented access to Equine Guided Empowerment™ for survivors of sexual assault form the basis for the foundation. Beth brings a deep passion for women’s issues and a vision for change to SheHerdPower. Her heartfelt sensitivity and compassion for others translates to an ardent desire to work diligently to create opportunities for women to heal and grow after trauma.
As a leader in the equine-guided development community and founder of the The Reflective Horse, Cassandra brings a lifetime of passion and knowledge about equine-guided development to SheHerdPower. Her proprietary concepts of Equine Guided Empowerment™ and Somatic Reprogramming™ form the foundation for programs. Beyond her contribution as program director, Cassandra is a gifted and passionate educator whose love of horses, inspiring presence, and openness provide a framework for the foundation’s ethos.
behind the name
The name SheHerdPower references the three central elements of the program: women, horses, and empowerment. The powerful, healing dynamic between survivors of sexual trauma and horses references a shared narrative of subjugation and loss of power and provides a foundation from which empathy, trust, and understanding can emanate as part of the therapeutic process.
The word ‘Herd’ takes on additional symbolic meaning referencing not only horses and their central role in the program, but also the need to be ‘heard’ or the process of reclaiming your voice after trauma. It also speaks to the power of community and support systems. As part of SheHerdPower’s core values, we believe community offers a safe space to be ourselves; where we can be stronger together, and work toward a common vision of female empowerment. The program is not just about the personal aspects of empowerment and somatic reprogramming, but also, by default, giving women a voice and a platform to share and keep in touch.
