Michael Canham has spent his life dedicated to one love: horses. “I'm a loyal horse person. I started clearing stables when I was 16 years old,” Canham said. “That was June of '66, and it went from there.”

Today, Canham can be found three days a week grooming, watering, and caring for the horses at Edelweiss Equine Assisted Therapy Center in Greenfield during the riding season. For nearly four years, the horses, visitors, and owners of the therapeutic riding facility have benefitted from Canham's dedicated service. But ask him what the most important thing he has gained is, and he's quick to answer with one word: family.

“They just adopted me!” Canham said.

The relationship between Canham and Edelweiss' founders (Elisa Bell and her parents, Dr. Dick Bowen and Joannie Bowen) is clearly more than a business association. “From a stable management perspective, he's better than most volunteers,” Bell said. “But we just fell in love with him from the start. He's part of our family now.”

When the Bells and the Bowens say he's family, they mean it, and put their words into action. Family dinners, holidays, special occasions, and the day-to-day activities of a family always include Canham, who appreciates the involvement within a family unit. But the connection between Bell, the Bowens, and Canham almost never happened.

Canham, who has a developmental disability, receives support from a team of individuals who assist him with a variety of daily living issues. As one of more than 11,000 Hoosiers receiving an Autism, Developmental Disabilities, or Support Services Waiver from the State of Indiana, Canham uses his waiver to access a variety of services that enable him to live an independent, empowered life.

A few years ago, Canham had shared his interest in horses with his behavioral management advocate, who assists him with behavior support services. On a hunch, his therapist drove Canham to Edelweiss to see if they might have a volunteer position available for him.

“It was a day we weren't open and I normally wouldn't have been home, much less hear a car in the driveway,” Bell said. “But there was Mike and he walked up and started telling me about his interest and how he loved horses and about all of his experience. So we gave him a chance, and it has worked out really well.”

Steve O'dore, Canham's behavioral consultant from Tangram, Inc. (formally Independent Residential Living of Central Indiana (IRLINC)), said, “Matching an individual's need with an interest is a natural fit. It's our job to provide comprehensive mental health support. An important element of our approach is to find ways to improve a person's quality of life. We cannot create the relationships such as that which has developed between Mike and the fine people at Edelweiss, but we can help create the opportunity.”

Within the fences of Edelweiss, Canham has found not only an outlet for his interests and love of horses, but also a family structure and an atmosphere that is conducive to his personal goals.

“Mike often uses Big Ben (an eight-year-old draft horse) as a sort of therapy,” said Bell. “When he's aggravated or frustrated by something, he'll seek out Big Ben and have a good five minute conversation with him.”

Angie Lyon, Edelweiss Assistant Operations Manager, says Canham's disability is not an issue for the staff at Edelweiss and doesn't interfere with Canham's professional contribution to the facility. “Mike understands the boundaries: what not to do and when to ask for help,” said Lyon. “He is an honest, compassionate, and very patient person, and is very observant. He often points out issues with one of the horses or the stable that no one else has noticed.”
Edelweiss frequently hosts groups of children, many of whom, like Canham, have a developmental disability. During these events, Lyons says Canham “blends in with the other volunteers and always volunteers to support the team.”

For Bell and the rest of the Edelweiss staff, Canham's flexibility and willingness to do whatever is needed, combined with his battery of skills and horsemanship, are a direct match to the facility's needs. “But we've never had to make adjustments or changes to our requirements for Mike,” said Bell. “He has excellent safety and horseman skills and he is a very hard-working and dedicated person.”

“I really like my job and taking care of the horses,” Canham said. “I like to do a good job; it keeps my good mood up when I do.”
As part of his waiver support, Canham receives case management services from Indiana Professional Management Group (IPMG), the sole provider for case management services to Indiana's waiver recipients. IPMG case management professionals work on Canham's behalf to ensure his waiver is utilized to meet his needs and move him closer to his dreams. Ashley Dombrowski, Canham's IPMG Case Manager, says the involvement by the Bells and the Bowens with Canham has had a positive effect on him.

“While the waiver provides a means for independent living for Mike, who had previously lived in a group home, Elisa and the Bowens have stepped in and filled a gap in his life,” said IPMG's Dombrowski. “Not only do they involve and include him in family functions, but they serve as a surrogate family for him when it comes to helping him plan his life and further his interests and dreams. They serve as a partner to all of the organizations, such as IPMG and Tangram, who advocate and work for Mike.”

“Our job at IPMG is to provide high quality, person-centered case management services, which includes an action-oriented plan, based on Mike's needs and interests, for everyone who supports Mike to use and better understand his hopes, needs, and dreams,” Dombrowski said. “This person-centered plan reflects what he has said are his interests and needs, and is shared with and supported by providers like Tangram and other individuals he chooses to be involved in his life, like the Bells and Bowens.”

By listening to Canham and understanding the goals he has for his life, IPMG can work collaboratively with Canham's service providers to empower and help Canham build his life through his selected paid supports and community supports.

“Keeping Mike involved in the community is a priority goal for him,” said Dombrowski. “Keeping his person-centered plan focused on those things that are important to him—as well as for him—is key to his ongoing success.”

The Bells and Bowens have assisted Canham with participating in a number of community activities, including Special Olympics, where Mike showed and rode Big Ben and has won several gold and silver medals.

Canham says he would like to do more, but the biggest barrier to community involvement is often not opportunity, but rather transportation within communities where mass transportation is unavailable. As part of Canham's waiver supports, a living skills coordinator is available to assist him one day a week, leaving him and his support team to find alternative options for him the rest of the week.

“Transportation to activities is the biggest barrier for Mike,” said Bell. “Mom, Dad, and I help him as much as we can, and we've also developed some relationships within the community that assist him, including our church. He's very responsible, and even walks by himself to some appointments that are close to his apartment.”

Looking toward the future, Bell doesn't see a point where Canham won't be a part of the Edelweiss family. And for Canham, that's just fine. “I like living in my apartment, and I like my work,” said Canham. “I'm glad I'm here.”