Parkwood Farms Saved From Foreclosure

It was a small celebration after a big victory at Parkwood Farms in Snellville Tuesday afternoon after more than six months of struggles.

“As of one o’clock today, I own this property outright,” said Dr. Marilyn Peterson, owner of the farm. “It’s a very blessed day.” 

In November of 2012, Peterson was served with an eviction notice and the equine therapy center faced foreclosure.

Now, thanks in part to an anonymous donor working with Occupy Atlanta, the center will remain open.

“I own the farm now, I own the property, I own my home,” said a delighted Peterson. “And as long as Parkwood Farms Therapy Center wants to continue to operate here, they will have a home.”

Peterson allows the non-profit to use her farm.

“It’s been hard work from everybody. The support from the community, the prayers from the people who surrounded us is what’s made this happen,” said Peterson.

The community held fundraisers and a candlelight vigil to try and save Parkwood. The farm helps disabled children by teaching them important life skills as they ride the horses. They currently have about 30 children who ride at the farm. Some of who ride for free.

“We don’t turn anyone away, whether they pay or not,” explained Peterson. 

Barbara Deboer is grateful the center will stay open. She regularly brings her grandchildren, Maya, age 5 and Hallah, 2, to Parkwood for therapy.

“She started riding when she was 3 and she was basically non-verbal. She was able to speak somewhat, but not clearly, you could barely understand anything she said.” said Deboer of Maya. “She just turned 5 years old. She’s going into a standard kindergarten class this year. That is not something we ever projected to be the case.”

Deboer expected that her granddaughter would be in a special needs classroom with no more than 12 students. But now little Maya is ready for a conventional classroom. Deboer attributes the improvement to the equine therapy.

Young Maya showed just how much she has improved by talking to reporters at Tuesday’s press conference.

“I like having fun,” said the 5 year old in a soft, yet confident voice. “And I love… Everything I love!” 

“I see miracles every day,” said Peterson of the young riders. “Kids that never spoke talk. Kids who couldn’t walk are suddenly mobile. They’re either crawling or walking. One child I was told would never want to jump because she’d had surgery on her hips and she’d be like a jumping bean up on the platform wanting to get on her horse.” Peterson says the families all attribute the changes to the therapy they received at the farm.

“You cannot imagine the weight that has been lifted off our shoulders. We’ve been operating since November, but we’ve always kind of had this cloud, and we didn’t know what was going to happen,” said Peterson referring to when they ceased programs unsure if they would be forced to move. “Now we have closure, we can say we’re here as long as we want to be. We can start growing our programs, start serving more kids. We need more volunteers!”

Parkwood Farms will hold a larger celebration on Saturday, July 13 and a golf tournament fundraiser on Friday, September 13.