PHOENIX RANCH VISITORS

The experience at Phoenix Ranch was unlike any other. The kids as well as our staff really enjoyed the unique opportunity to interact with the farm animals and some of the responsibilities that are entailed to running a farm. I enjoyed our tour guides also. They really made us feel as if we were apart of their community which allowed us all to feel very welcome. I encourage anyone who is found of animals, new experiences, and sense of community to go check out Phoenix Ranch-I loved it!"                                           Tanika Baptiste, Progress Ranch Staff

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Dear Dr. Chan,
 
     My visit to Phoenix Ranch was so enjoyable and enlightening for me.  After spending the past 19 years involved with the foster care system, level 14 group homes, mental health facilities and also being an adoptive parent to special needs children, I wish all of those children could have been exposed to your program.  The experiences you present to them, the way you teach and interact with them is a priceless gift for their development.

     Thank you for sharing your knowledge and talents with this part of society that is so underserved.
 
                                                        Sincerely,
                                                        Diane Howlett

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"October 28, 2008

In my three decades as a professional news photographer, I've seldom come across as gratifying, warm and generous a program as Phoenix Ranch.

From the moment I saw the gazes of at-risk children in a van pulling into the compound, their faces teeming with excitement and expectation, I sensed they were in for a rich and rewarding experience they'd never before experienced. I felt they would forever savor the moments with the animals and the knowledgeable and kind staff.

Many at-risk children are often hard to impress. Yet, to a child, the group I saw this summer was thoroughly engaged and receptive to the new experiences on the property. Dr. Sue Chan and all those involved with Phoenix Ranch paid close attention to the interests and needs of individuals and made certain the collective group had a fulfilling morning.

Horses, chickens, exotic birds, a pig and a goat were among the animals that kept the children rapt in the farm life before them as they petted, fed and tended the animals. I photographed tender moments of the children and animals as well scenes of them in the throes of everyday rural life, replete with hay, feed, barns and chirps.

Seeing children nuzzling days-old chicks up to their faces is an experience I'll not soon forget. And I've got photographs of those scenes to serve as a ready reminder of the precious moments I'd witnessed.

I'm hard-pressed to find superlatives for the impression the Phoenix Ranch program made on me. Suffice it to say that should the occasion warrant, I'd not hesitate in highly recommending Phoenix Ranch to family and friends."

Morgan Ong,  Sacramento, CA

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OVERNIGHT RANCH  EXCURSION