Dive-Into the third edition of #RideForTheCause Roundup
We’re bringing you news about El Patojismo’s anniversary, a story about some of the first PIO students to complete the equestrian vocational training course funded by an FEI Solidarity Grant to the Cambodian Equestrian Federation, and a look at how Ambassador Corinne Sweeney rides for the cause.
NEWS & NOTES
Join us at Belle Herbe Farm in Wellington, Florida, on Sunday, January 19, for our 22nd Annual Gala. New this year, the Sunday night event, during a holiday weekend, will allow WEF commuters and equestrians across disciplines to join us in celebrating JustWorld's mission and kick off a new year of transformative impact. With a carnival theme, the 2025 Gala will offer an exciting night of colorful enchantment, so Save the Date, and we'll see you under the big top!
Rome GCT
The Longines Global Champions Tour stop in Rome included exposure for JustWorld with Jumbotron signage and a JustWorld title class, presented by PremiuMares. Italy’s Luca Coata won the CSI2* 1.30M Prix JustWorld International presented by PremiuMares aboard Cassirana del Rilate. JustWorld founder and board member Jessica Newman (left), Ambassador Laura Kraut (center), fresh from the Paris Olympic Games, and Denis Monticolo, LGCT Event Director and commercial manage, presented the awards to Coata. Many thanks to JWI board member Milena Papas and the Longines Global Champions Tour for the opportunity.
El Patojismo Celebrates 18 Years
The first week of September marked a celebration of 18 years for El Patojismo in Jocotenango, Guatemala. Students, faculty and staff, supporters and founder Juan Pablo Romero Fuentes enjoyed a series of festivities marking the anniversary.
Some of the festivities were held in the school’s Samuel-Sanford Family Performance Hall, made possible by the longstanding support of JustWorld Ambassadors Mark Samuel and Kevin Sanford.
Even as Juan Pablo notes the amazing achievements over nearly two decades, he is looking ahead to further developments.
“In 2006 we opened the doors of our family home to start ‘Los Patojos.’ In 2014 ‘El Patojismo’ was strengthened and made official with the construction of our first school ‘El Semillero;’ in 2022 the second headquarters ‘CDO – Centro de Oportunidades’ was opened and in 2025 ‘El Restaurante y el Laboratorio de Café’ is coming,” Juan Pablo said on El Patojismo’s Instagram. “We will continue working.”
PIO Students Learn the Language of Horses
Socheat was both excited and nervous when she arrived at the Genius Resort stable in Phnom Penh in March to embark on a new adventure. After graduating from People Improvement Organization, where she’d studied for 10 years, she was starting training to become a groom in a program funded by a Gender Equality Grant from FEI Solidarity to the Cambodian Equestrian Federation.
It was a daunting challenge for a 19-year-old who’d never touched or seen a real horse.
“They said it’s hard, and I told them nothing is easy,” PIO Founder Phymean Noun said. A CNN Hero, Phymean started PIO in 2002 to change the lives of children living in poverty through education. “You have to learn, and you have to strive. You have to complete it. Even in school, studying is not easy, and you can not quit. You have to try everything.
Socheat and two sisters, Chheng E and Chheng Ouy, all former PIO students, graduated from the two-month training session in June. Discovering a love for horses, they have continued to work and train at the Genius Resort.
“I want to be able to support myself and my family so that we can have a better life,” Socheat said.
“I liked animals but never had anything to do with horses,” Socheat said. “I like the horses’ characteristics. They are different. I know they can’t speak human language, but they have a communication language of themselves, and it’s very unique to them.”
Socheat lives in Phnom Penh with her brother and parents. “For the future, I want to be able to support myself and my family so that we can have a better life,” she said. She dreams of someday earning enough money to travel and experience new cultures, and the salaries for experienced grooms and other equestrian roles can far surpass alternative opportunities in Cambodia.
At the barn, she’s enjoyed getting to know the horses and how to care for them. Riding an hour a day, she is now trotting, cantering and jumping small jumps.
Chheng E and Chheng Ouy work in the pony stable, while Socheat works in the stable used by the national team, where she said she is the only girl.
“I love everything about the horse–their eyes, muzzle, ears, everything,” Chheng E said.
“We all gained confidence from riding horses because the first time was very scary, very hard,” Socheat said.
They’ve also enjoyed some teenage humor that spans time and culture: “We were accompanying a guest in the arena,” explained Socheat with a smile. “The horses were trotting, and one farted. It was a huge explosion, a loud sound in the arena!”
All the girls broke out laughing at the memory. They found some humor as well in Chheng E’s mishaps. “Chheng E was cantering, and the horse suddenly stopped, and sometimes she flies off,” Socheat said with a smile.
Chheng E was afraid to touch the horses at first, but now she loves horses, including grooming and riding them.
“I love everything about the horse–their eyes, muzzle, ears, everything,” she said. “I love big horses. Some of them are good, and some are naughty.”
Chheng E hopes to someday become a professional rider on the national team, and her first show is September 22. Some members of her family will come to watch, but her father, who has been in the hospital for a long time, won’t be able to join them.
Chheng E and Chheng Ouy, who are 16 and 17, had to leave school to start working and supporting their family. They hope a career with horses will help them to care for themselves and their families.
Chheng Ouy hopes to make a career in the equestrian world.
Socheat also provides for her family by working in the stables. Her parents suffer from serious illness and require expensive medication every month.”It costs a lot to get the pills,” Socheat said. “My dad almost got liver cancer, but [it was caught]. My mom has a similar [condition] to him but has more bacteria, and she’s still recovering–I don’t think she is getting better. I think she is getting worse.”
For now, Socheat continues to train to learn more about the equestrian industry and develop skills to serve her as a groom, to speak the language of the horse and to someday fund wider explorations.
“I love horses very much,” she said. “I love working with horses, being able to understand another life that’s not human and understanding how they work and live, their behaviors. Sometimes working with an animal is not easy, but understanding horse language is one of many languages I can work on. Hopefully I will be able to visit horse barns in the future when I travel.”
How I #RideForTheCause
Corinne Sweeney: Fun, Friends & Fulfillment As An Ambassador
Under the scenic skies of Lake Placid, JustWorld Ambassador Corinne Sweeney hosted a Horseless Horse Show fundraiser in support of JustWorld International. Photo courtesy of Corinne Sweeney.
If you’re looking for a fun and creative way to fundraise for JustWorld International, consider taking a page out of Ambassador Corinne Sweeney’s book. Last summer, Corinne, 20, hosted her first Horseless Horse Show fundraiser supporting JustWorld at the I Love New York horse show in Lake Placid. Her efforts raised over $1,400 and were a massive success amongst participants.
“It is silly, but I believe the idea gets a lot of traction in the young, horse show-obsessed kids because it’s super fun,” Corinne said. “When my siblings and I were little, we would run around the ring, trying to jump what was set for the horses. It’s just a fun challenge.”
JustWorld has a history of producing successful horseless horse shows, most memorably raising $7,475 at a 2011 event in Wellington, Florida. While Corinne has helped JustWorld organize these events in the past, last year marked the first time she ran one independently.
After securing the green light from show organizers, Corinne used her family’s miniature jumps to design courses for the short stirrup, junior jumpers, and grand prix divisions. The entry fee was $20 per person.
“We set up a course of jumps exactly like a jumper competition, and [the] fastest clear wins,” Corinne said. “The main consideration is finding mini jumps. They’re easily buildable with old plastic and wooden materials or with items like buckets and brooms. A lot of horse show businesses even have their own these days to draw kids to their storefront.”
To ensure the fundraiser's success, Corinne focused on logistics like choosing the right location on the show grounds and avoiding rider disruption.
“[The] biggest challenge was finding a place to do it where I didn't spook any horses that were still competing,” Corinne said. “I also [made] sure I didn’t have to compete at the same time I scheduled it for.”
Corinne found a central location in the show’s vendor field, drawing in participants without distracting competition.
“[The] community loved it,” she said. “I had to come back and clean up the next day because I couldn’t get kids off the jumps.”
Corinne has become one of JustWorld’s most dedicated Ambassadors since joining the organization in 2020. Though not new to the philanthropic scene––she also interns with a human rights campaign––Corinne enjoys combining her passions for horses and human rights and networking with like-minded peers.
“JustWorld is a family of people who care and support each other as much as we want to support others,” Corinne said. “It’s given me so much experience in the basics of nonprofit endeavors, and [I’ve made] amazing friends. If you’re passionate about giving back to the world, this is how you can do it in tangent with riding. It’s about recognizing privilege and using our unique skills, networks, and platforms to channel that toward impact. I’m proud to represent this socially conscious direction that I hope the industry can move in.”
Corinne Sweeney, one of JustWorld’s most dedicated Ambassadors. Photo courtesy of Corinne Sweeney.
When not working with JustWorld, Corinne is enjoying her junior year at the University of Virginia, where she studies political science and media studies. She actively works to balance school with her love of riding.
“I've been riding since I was five,” Corinne said. “My parents were both big riders, so I grew up around the shows and the barn. I always loved the horses and spent most of my growing up in the barn, spending time learning how to care for them. Today, I show in [the] 1.45-meter divisions, U25s, and national grand prix’s when I'm not in school.”
“[The] long-term goal,” she added, “would be to eventually break on to senior U.S. teams and the big international grand prix’s.”
For equestrians looking to do good outside of the ring, Corinne recommends finding a cause within JustWorld that speaks to you.
“Join JustWorld—it's fun,” Corinne said. “I’ve made some of my best friends in the sport here, and it's been so fulfilling. I’m excited to see that the horse-world-based philanthropies are growing a lot recently, so find what speaks to you, and get involved however you can.”
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
The Story Behind Talisman Fly Bonnets
JustWorld at North American Youth Championships:
Olympic Insights from Catie Staszak
A New Truck for Asociación Compartir
Alumni Ambassador Kira Kerkorian
How I #RideForTheCause: Maude Boulanger-Bouchard
JustWorld at Hagen Future Champions
5 Minutes With Ambassador Eric Navet
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