We all know how important it is for our horses to FEEL good. This month’s featured volunteer also makes them LOOK good!

Red Bucket volunteers know our mission statement inside and out: To save and rehabilitate horses, restore their trust in humankind and find them safe, loving and permanent adoptive homes. Shannon Gibbs believes in this and more; she loves to make them look and feel beautiful!
Last year Shannon’s boyfriend stumbled upon Red Bucket Ranch and told her about it. She immediately submitted her application to volunteer and within two days arranged for a tour of the facility. “I was warmly greeted by Susan Peirce and became very impressed with the Ranch, how professional everyone was and how organized everything seemed,” Shannon recalls. “I was instantly made to feel welcome. It was as if I had been accepted into a family! I currently volunteer 3-5 days a week, and it is my escape, my personal oasis.”

After training, Shannon started with grooming and turnouts, and for two weeks was mentored by Kathy Hessman to learn the “Red Bucket Way”. Soon she was helping Lauren Harms and Barbara Todd with tacking and preparing the horses, and quickly graduated to lunging the horses on her own. “All of these gals work so hard, and have such a great attitude. It became apparent as to why the Ranch was so well run. Everyone has such a positive attitude,” Shannon explains.
“Shannon has an incredible passion for horses and a passion for our cause. She has no ego and is always so service oriented,” Susan Peirce explains. “She is always willing to help, and she has grown in her ability to work with the horses. She has become completely indispensable, has a great attitude, and just loves, loves, LOVES the horses-in particular the bad boys! It’s quite interesting. Shannon is truly amused by the naughty horses.”

Lauren can’t say enough about Shannon: “Shannon is a down-to-earth and polite woman, very dedicated and eager to learn. She is always willing to stay late to make sure each horse gets the necessary care and enrichment. She’s one of a kind with a heart of gold!”
Shannon is a Guardian Angel to Memphis, a super cute Quarter Horse mare with a darling personality. According to Shannon, “She nickers for me and is learning to trust me. She is going through some desensitizing right now. My goal is to one day adopt her!” Lauren also points out that Shannon acts as guardian angel to ALL of the horses she handles, giving each of them an extra goody or braiding their manes for the simple joy of keeping them company.

Lauren delves deeper into Shannon’s responsibilities: “She also tacks up, lunges, untacks, and bathes horses to help me ride as many as possible, and believe me I ride far more when Shannon or Barbara are there! She does this on top of her own list to turnout and groom. Shannon is truly ‘Red Bucket Red’, in part because she is such a lovely and well-rounded person. She will do anything she can to help anyone else, even if it makes her day a little longer. She’s always upbeat, uplifting others and occasionally myself. Her optimism and cheerfulness is contagious and she surely makes us all feel welcome and appreciated!”

Her willingness to always do more and her strong work ethic has allowed Shannon to take on very important and challenging tasks. Even on bad days-the hot or rainy days in particular-she is always eager to do whatever it takes and we can always count on her to be there. “Shannon takes the initiative to take care of things around the Ranch, or to ask how she can help,” Susan elaborates. “One of Shannon’s greatest characteristics is her ability to never take things too seriously. She works in a very structured manner, and handles various jobs at the Ranch. She is one of those dedicated workers that doesn’t just DO a job, she really becomes a part OF the job. She just rolls up her sleeves and tackles it, with a wonderful sense of confidence and humor that seems to work well with the horses. She is a big help to Lauren and she has developed tremendous confidence in a short period of time.”

With a deep-rooted passion for horses, Shannon has developed an evolving ‘horse sense’. She has become adept at understanding the different equine personalities at our Ranch, and has learned that our horses are always looking to elicit a response from their handlers. Shannon has learned to laugh and use her levity and humor to coax out their unique personalities. AND she applies her hairstylist skills to add pretty braids to many a horse’s mane!

“I have learned a great deal from everyone at Red Bucket, including the horses!” Shannon shares. “They have taught me patience; that everything comes with time. Trust does not happen overnight, it is earned over time. You want to help all of the horses and get immediate results; however, they will let you know when they are ready to let you in. Our horses bring out the happiness and goodness in people.”

Shannon also has a goal to recruit more volunteers for the Ranch, to raise more money for the horses, and to help spread the word about Red Bucket to raise awareness for our cause. Thanks to Shannon, our Ranch and our horses reap the rewards of her love and her talents.