Sarah LesslerLINDA VATAHA’S MOBILE MINIS SPREAD HAPPINESS
Linda Vataha’s Mobile Minis delivers the healing power of horses to those who need it most. With her fleet of miniature therapy horses, Linda and her volunteers visit schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and community events, spreading joy and comfort. These tiny horses have a unique ability to connect with people of all ages, making Mobile Minis a heartwarming movement of kindness on four little hooves.
Horses were always a passion for Linda, though she never had one of her own. Her connection to them began through a childhood friend who owned horses. When Linda’s children finished college, she finally had the time and resources to fulfill her dream of owning a horse. She and her husband, John, built a barn on their property so she could keep the horse at home. “Horses are herd animals and don’t like to be alone, so he needed a friend. And so it begins,” Linda muses.
Philanthropy has always been central to Linda’s life. She spent years as an Outreach Coordinator for her church in Pennsylvania, served as a Big Sister, and volunteered at Christ’s Home for Children and Assisted Living. After
moving to Arizona, she began volunteering at Reigning Grace Ranch, a sanctuary for rescued horses used for equine therapy, mentorship, and life skills programs for at-risk youth, families, and veterans. One day, Reigning Grace received a call from an assisted living facility requesting a miniature horse for a resident celebrating her 90th birthday. “I sat back and saw the effect the horse had on this woman and everyone in the room,” Linda says. That moment inspired Mobile Minis.
Motivated by that experience, she set out to learn all she could about animal-assisted therapy and how to start her own charitable organization. “I took any course I could get my hands on, such as the local college equine courses in Barn Safety and First Aid for Horses. I took an online course in Animal Assisted Activities/Pet Therapy and multiple Pet Partners pet therapy courses to receive certifications,” Linda notes.
In 2015, Mobile Minis was officially launched. The name, thought up by John, became the brand for Linda’s growing movement. The original Mobile Minis van, purchased from Craigslist, was refurbished to safely transport the minis to their therapy destinations. “We wanted to see if this adventure would take off, and boy did it, like wildfire!” Linda exclaims. Stories of generosity poured in as Mobile Minis grew. When they needed to upgrade their van, the dealership donated money for the cus- tom wrapping; the amount donated by the dealership was not enough, so the wrapping company donated the rest.
Over the decade, Mobile Minis relocated from Arizona to Pennsylvania and now operates in Florida. Linda considers the minis and volunteers part of her extended family. When the program relocated, some volunteers were inspired to start their own miniature horse outreach programs. Linda has supported these new initiatives by training the volunteers, mentoring from afar, and donating experienced minis so the new programs could continue when Mobile Minis moved.
“Some of the minis come from difficult back- grounds. All of our minis are either rescued by us or donated to us. Mobile Minis has never purchased a miniature horse,” Linda says. She invests substantial time in their rehabilitation and training, care- fully preparing them for therapy work. She’s attuned to each mini’s needs, understanding that some aren’t suited for this type of work.
One of Linda’s most cherished minis was Sheriff, who took six months to let people touch him. ‘He became my number one therapy horse,” Linda reminisces. “I trained all my volunteers with him and all my therapy horses alongside him. He was my rockstar and a grave loss to me when he passed,” she expresses. Over the years, Mobile Minis has rescued, rehabilitated, and adopted out over 30 horses.
Mobile Minis has a broad reach, visiting assisted living facilities, hospitals, schools, domestic abuse shelters, churches, and centers for memory care and special needs. The organization’s “Mini Tales” literacy program invites people of all ages—from 5 to 105—to Linda and John’s farm, where they can read to the minis in a cozy, on-site library. Twice a week, Linda and John open their farm to the community for “barn sessions,” an experience that’s particularly popular with homeschooled children.
The people who volunteer with Mobile Minis become family to Linda and John and hold special places in their hearts. Linda says she gets extra special enjoyment from “watching my husband, the city boy, who is allergic to hay, step in and help when I need him. He is my rock.”
To read the digital version of this story and the entire EQ Living 2024 November/December Issue, click here. Click here to see more of EQ Living’s favorite philanthropies and philanthropic equestrians.
