- I'm here with Brad Paisley.
Give it up! (audience cheering)
(audience applauding) All right.
As Brad will tell you,
horses have inspired a lot of country music.
Well, now they're also inspiring some kids to read
and it's all thanks to my next guest.
She's the founder of Saddle Up and Read,
a nonprofit that uses horses to help children read more
and read better.
She's what we call a rad human.
(upbeat music)
All right, everybody, please welcome Caitlin Gooch!
(audience applauding)
Well, Caitlin, this is amazing what you're doing.
Can you tell us how Saddle Up and Read started?
- Absolutely.
I grew up with horses my entire life.
I'm from a small town called Wendell, North Carolina.
So born and raised country girl.
And I worked with children at daycares,
I volunteered at Boys and Girls Clubs,
and I noticed that there was a need
for Saddle Up and Read.
The literacy rates in North Carolina aren't that great,
especially among black children.
And so I reached out to our local library and I said,
"Hey, I really want to share my horses with kids
because they have impacted my life
and I want to help close the literacy gap."
And so for our very first program in 2017,
the librarians allowed children
who checked out three or more books
to be entered into a drawing.
And at the end of the month, we had about 180 entries.
And the librarians picked five kids.
And those kids got a chance to come out to the farm
and read books to the horses
and groom the horses and feed them treats.
And so that's how all of that started.
And then I noticed that I wasn't able
to really get the demographic of children I wanted to reach.
So I used social media to get a donation
for a truck and a trailer, which I got in August, 2020.
And so I've been driving the truck and trailer around
with books and one of my horses.
And so I'll set up and the kids can come by,
they can take a book for free,
and they get a chance to pet one of the horses as well.
- Oh, I love it.
I love your accent as well.
Oh my gosh, the driving and all the rights and the whites.
I love it.
It's not just about reading though.
You also promote inclusivity, which is very important.
- Yes. I am a black cowgirl.
I'm a black equestrian,
and oftentimes I'm the first one
that the children or staff members at the school,
or even the parents see.
And that's really important to me
to show that representation
because when we look at the horse industry,
it's predominantly white.
So when I show up, people are like,
"Wow. Like, I can do this too."
And just with that representation,
I remember meeting an older man who said
that his mom kinda crushed his dreams.
You know, when he was a kid, he wanted to be a cowboy
but she told him that black people were not cowboys.
And that's so not true.
And we have such a rich history
that people often don't know about.
- I love that.
I love teaching them that too.
Yeah.
Isn't that cool, Brad?
- It's so great.
And where were you when I played for those kids
at the library when I was little?
I needed your horses. (all laughing)
- He needed anything. - You didn't reach out!
- You could've saved my show.
(Kelly laughing) - Definitely.
Especially with my miniature horse, Man-Man.
- Oh, I bet.
- So wait, Caitlin, you got a shout out
from none other than Oprah.
That's like the seal of approval in life.
Like, so how did that feel?
- Oh my goodness.
She wished me a happy birthday.
She shouted out Saddle Up and Read.
And in that moment, I think I like almost passed out,
but I was sitting down so I'm not sure.
I thought it was totally fake because when I was on Twitter
and someone said, "Oprah tweeted you."
I was like, "What do you mean Oprah tweeted me?"
But it was real and it was just life changing.
And then the next day, LeVar Burton, you know,
"Reading Rainbow" himself tweeted me.
It just means so much to me.
- Two of the kids from her program
are actually joining us right now.
Please welcome Mariah and her mama, Jasmine,
and Sev with his mama, Latisha.
What's up, y'all?
(audience applauding) (audience cheering)
- Hey, Kelly. - Oh my God,
it's another cowboy hat.
You look so handsome!
- Say thank you.
- You look so good, man.
Well, Jasmine, I'll start with you, Jasmine.
Your daughter has struggled with reading.
My daughter, actually, she she struggles a bit
with reading as well, and it's one of those things
we do every night and I try and get her really excited about
and not embarrassed.
And it's kind of a hard thing.
So how has this program made a difference?
- I definitely agree. It is a hard thing.
That's why I'm very thankful and blessed
for Saddle Up and Read.
You know, as a parent, you always question yourself like,
are you doing enough?
What can I do more?
You know, all that stuff.
So when I found out Mariah was actually reading
at a grade level of three, even though she's in fifth grade,
it was really tough to hear,
especially being that she has younger sister
that's on track with reading.
So it's like, you know, how do you explain that
and make them know how special they really are,
regardless of what they're reading at, you know?
So it was really hard.
I mean, especially because we're in 2021.
And how do you get a kid off electronics?
I mean, it's not easy.
- First of all, in 2020, I don't care who's shaming me,
I was throwing electronics in front of them.
I was like, save yourself, watch some iPad.
You're like, "This year doesn't count."
And also, just to say like, it's very like...
Because I've had the same similar conversations
with my mother who's a teacher
and also teachers and with my kid,
every kid learns at a different pace.
and they all end up catching up.
It's just a different pace.
But do you think that this program kind of helped her?
- Oh, absolutely. Absolutely.
Her confidence has been insane.
The first time we ever went out to the barn
for Saddle Up and Read, we read to a couple of the horses
and I mean, Mariah had a time of her life.
She's in tutoring now.
It's just been an overall blessing for her
as well as my younger child as well.
- That's so great.
Well, Mariah, I have to ask, I love horses as well.
What do you love about horses?
- What I love about horses is feeding them maybe carrots
and I get to read to them.
And the difference between a horse and a human
is because when I read in front of a human,
like my teacher or the students,
I get like really nervous and shy,
but whatever I read in front of a horse,
which is one of my favorite animals,
I feel fine and I feel better.
- Absolutely.
And it gives you more confidence.
It's so smart.
And Latisha, I'm gonna talk to you now.
Your story is different.
Sev is too young to read
but the program's impacted him quite a bit though, right?
- Yes. Yes.
We originally met Caitlin at a Juneteenth protest
and it was Sev's first time touching a horse
and seeing a horse
but it was also his first time
seeing a black person on a horse.
And I think that was really special to him
because I don't see too many adults, let alone kids,
that get that experience.
It's just not common.
And it's funny 'cause when people ask me
"What farm does he go to
and who was his horseback riding instructor?"
And I tell them about Caitlin,
they almost automatically assume that she's not black.
And when I tell 'em she's black,
they's like, "She's black?"
And I'm like, "Yeah, she's black."
So I think having that representation for him
just took his horse obsession to a whole new level
because he feels like, "If Ms. Cate can be a cowgirl,
he can definitely be a cowboy."
- Well, I wanted to say, I'm so proud of you guys
for just doing something you love.
And also Mariah, it's a very cool thing
that you're reading to those horses
and you're getting stronger at it
'cause reading will open up the doors
for any and every opportunity in life.
It is very important.
I have the same conversation with my daughter.
And so I just want to ask though, Brad,
it's crazy how just interacting with horses
can change a kid so much.
I know that we've probably both heard of equine therapy.
Like a lot of people use horses for many things.
I've never actually heard, Caitlyn, anything like this.
Have you ever heard anything like this, Brad?
- No, it's unbelievable.
I mean, like watching what you're doing,
it's an amazing way to change the world
and especially starting with kids.
And I'm floored, I really am.
I think, you know, just seeing what you're doing
and the way you're expanding this world, it's just,
who knows where this leads.
I think this is the beginning
of something really big, Caitlin.
Well, we actually reached out to Little Brown Books
for young readers who carry a wide variety
of book collections from New York Times bestselling authors
and illustrators like Todd Parr.
They heard about all the great work you're doing
and want to help.
So they're giving Saddle Up and Read
a donation worth $5,000.
How's that sound?
- Oh my goodness! (audience applauding)
Thank you. Wow! - Yeah, Saddle Up and Read
moving on up, $5,000.
Will that make a difference? Does that help?
- Yes, it does.
And believe it or not,
the books are the most expensive part of this program.
- So, that's amazing.
Well, we've got to get more books to you then.
That's another goal of my own, like with this show.
I think that it's very important
that they have the access.
You know, reading creates so much opportunity
and I was blessed to have a mama that was a teacher
and she instilled that in me at a young age.
So we've gotta definitely hand those blessings down
and pay it forward.