
DATE: Sunday, May 4, 1997                   TAG: 9705020212

SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN             PAGE: 06   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: COVER STORY 

SOURCE: BY JOHN-HENRY DOUCETTE, CORRESPONDENT 
                                            LENGTH:  110 lines

NOT JUST HORSE PLAY LOCAL 4-H CLUB HELPS A TEEN-AGE MEMBER WITH CEREBRAL PALSY RIDE TALL IN A SPECIALLY DESIGNED SADDLE.

MICHAEL A. LEIBRAND wanted to ride.

Not in his wheelchair. On a horse, just like the other members of the Suffolk Reiners 4-H Club.

But Michael, 13, has used a wheelchair for most of his life because of cerebral palsy. The condition, caused by brain damage suffered at or before the time of birth, impairs muscular power.

Disability is not a factor for the Suffolk Reiners, which meets Wednesday afternoons at the Western Branch Stables.

Only spirit matters.

The club pooled resources and purchased a special saddle, which allows Leibrand to ride safely with adult supervision. The saddle, which has straps, special padding and a back support that looks like a surfboard half-buried in sand, was designed by a paraplegic cowboy.

``It's changed a lot of lives,'' said Sharyn C. Hughes, the volunteer who leads the Suffolk organization.

At a recent meeting, Michael took his first extended spin in the saddle.

He wore a blue and black jacket with a 4-H patch over the right breast. A light blue Pro-Tec helmet was on his head, and he wore plastic-framed glasses. To make the lean young man fit in the saddle, the group's adult volunteers placed two roles of paper towels, still in the plastic, on either side of him.

Sharyn and husband Larry A. Hughes, 50, began to lead the horse, Sonny, into the fenced riding area behind the stable. Mike

LaVee, 46, whose children also ride at the stables, walked along behind.

And then there was a scary moment.

A horse that hadn't bucked in its 20 years on Earth started bucking. Michael, strapped to the animal's back, went back and forth.

His grandfather, 74-year-old Chester Leibrand, was by his side in a flash, but the Hugheses and LaVee had the horse calmed down, and Michael hadn't been thrown.

They readjusted the saddle, which had made the horse uncomfortable, and and Michael wanted to keep going.

Chester Leibrand watched as his grandson rode the horse.

``Damn bit exciting for a while there,'' said the retired civil service worker, who was watching Michael with his wife Gladys while their grandson's mother and their daughter, Mella Leibrand, worked.

``Oh my goodness,'' said Larry Hughes, shaking his head while walking along side Michael, who softly said ``yes'' when asked if he wanted to continue.

Michael slouched forward a bit in the saddle.

``Sit up straight, Michael,'' his grandfather called. The Hugheses and LaVee led the horse around slowly, as other youngsters and volunteers rode in the fenced area.

``After he rides for 10 or 15 minutes, it's amazing,'' Chester Leibrand said. ``We're mighty pleased about him riding out here. We wish he could come out here every day.''

Before the new equipment, three adults had to lead the horse while two of them held Michael up on the saddle. This new saddle will change the way the young man rides. The 4-Hers are convinced it is liberating him. There's a lot of faith placed in that saddle. And in Michael.

``You see, he started breathing too soon and they had to use forceps,'' the grandfather said. ``He came down with cerebral palsy. He wasn't born that way. When they breathe too early, they breathe in their own body waste. That's what the doctors told me, which shows you what I know about it.

``But, you see, look at his legs . . . ''

He went over to his grandson and pulled the young man's right leg back. It moved smoothly. When they took Michael out of the chair to put him in the saddle earlier, his legs had been tight together, like boards stuck together with nails. They had to pry his legs apart.

He sat on the horse, a few heads taller than anyone around him.

``Tell him to walk on,'' instructed Sharyn Hughes.

``Walk,'' Michael said softly. His light-green eyes shone through his glasses. And he began to slouch a bit.

``Look up, Michael,'' Chester Leibrand urged again. ``Remember, cowboys don't look at the ground. They look at the trees.''

Soon only Sharyn Hughes was with Michael as he and Sonny trotted through the far side of the riding area. She had her hand on the saddle, and the horse walked calmly.

They came back.

``Woah,'' Michael said softly.

``That's a good boy,'' said Sharyn Hughes.

The ride ended.

``We're quite happy,'' said Michael's grandfather. ``Soon Michael won't need anyone to lead that horse.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photos including color cover by GARY KNAPP

Kelly Green, 9, brushes ``Tequilla'' in the program that teaches

children how to ride and care for horses.

Michael Leibrand, 13, who has cerebral palsy, sets aside his usual

transportation and settles into a special saddle aboard Sonny with

the help of Mike LaVee.

Graphic

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