Leg Up for Cleveland’s Kids (LUCK) harnesses the power of horses to transform the lives of youth in the Greater Cleveland area–especially those facing significant life challenges. LUCK creates a safe and inclusive environment where young people build trust, responsibility, and emotional resilience; enhance effective communication skills and physical fitness; learn to manage anger responses; and receive guidance about forms of trauma through structured equine interaction. LUCK engages youth in reflective activities that foster agency and community connection, thus equipping them with the skills and self-awareness that support academic persistence, personal growth, and future opportunities.
Support Healing. Empower Youth. Sustain Lives.
Leg Up for Cleveland’s Kids (LUCK) is the area’s longest provider of equine-assisted learning and wellness support focused solely on resilient and vulnerable youth who need no medical diagnosis to participate, but who are likely affected by violence, economic injustice, and systemic neglect, often resulting in trauma, anxiety, and anger.
Under the coaching of experienced mentors and equine professionals, students learn to care for, connect with, and understand horses, while discovering their own inner strength and capacity for growth. Participants are guided through this curriculum in three phases, including basic horsemanship, intermediate riding and care, and, if they show aptitude and desire, can receive more advanced instruction from a professional trainer in advanced equestrianism.
Often, students work with rescued equines in LUCK’s herd. As they witness the transformation of their equine partner, they learn accountability, consistency, and empathy—lessons that resonate long after they leave the barn.
Since 2016, LUCK has been known for its thorough curriculum that aligns with Ohio
Department of Education learning standards in social and emotional learning, social
studies, English Language Arts, physical education, and science, as well as vocations and
trades. In fact, LUCK’s curriculum, based on the book “Horse” by Geraldine Brooks (the
story of the legendary Lexington and his groom, Jarrett, in the pre-Civil War south), resulted in an opportunity for LUCK participants to meet and discuss the book with the author.
LUCK is a Cleveland Metropolitan School District vendor/partner, having recently signed a second Memorandum of Understanding with the Northern Ohio Recovery Association, and is a member of the United States Equestrian Federation Outreach Program. The organization has received philanthropic support from PNC, New Beginnings, The Cleveland Foundation/NeighborUp, IdeaStream, the Progressive Insurance Foundation, and theInsurance Industry Charitable Foundation, among others.
