[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 79 (Monday, June 7, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1156]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                  TRIBUTE TO CHRISTINE AND STAN PENTON

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BOB SCHAFFER

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, June 7, 1999

  Mr. SCHAFFER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mr. and 
Mrs. Christine and Stan Penton, founders of a remarkable program for 
disabled individuals. The Pegasus Program helps people overcome 
disabilities through hippotherapy (therapy through horses). They 
recently held a ground breaking for a new facility at Normandy Farms 
and Stables in Littleton, Colorado. I was heartened to learn about the 
new home for the Pegasus Program for handicapped riders, particularly 
after working hard to pass a law which directs a study on ways to 
improve disabled access to outdoor recreation on public lands.
  The Pegasus Program is indeed intriguing. I commend Mr. and Mrs. 
Penton for their creativity and for their innovative approach to 
bettering the lives of the disabled. The Pegasus Program, however, 
benefits more than just the disabled. They use wild horses trained by 
inmates at the Canon City correctional facility. Because wild horses 
have no natural predators, they tend to overpopulate and overgraze 
public lands. Sadly, these symbols of the American West out-compete 
wildlife, and eventually themselves. What a unique opportunity through 
the Pegasus Program to help wild horses, give prison inmates 
constructive and rewarding work, and help the disabled overcome their 
physical limitations. With heartfelt pride, I thank Mr. and Mrs. Penton 
for their work.

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