Quite a coup for TJ Stables.
After struggling to stay afloat at the beginning of the pandemic and wading through the various levels of restrictions over the last 20 months, the Chatham-based business was nominated for not one, but three Resiliency Innovation awards at last night’s Ontario Tourism Summit.
The Tourism Resiliency Awards recognize those who have made outstanding contributions to Ontario’s tourism industry in the areas of sustainability, innovation, and collaboration.
TJ Stables and its Spirit Horse Encounter were nominated in the categories of Indigenous Tourism Operator, Outdoor, and Winter tourism.
In the end, owners Terry Jenkins and John Basden were honoured with the award for Indigenous Tourism.
“With this award, it gives is creditability for our Indigenous tourism aspect. Anyone of all cultures can come here, and these Spirit Horses become a bridge between culture understanding, and with understanding comes reconciliation.”
Jenkins credits collaboration for the Spirt Horse Encounter with support from Chatham-Kent Tourism, Southwestern Ontario Tourism, and local Indigenous partners.
Jenkins says the Spirit Horses themselves, who were down to just four surviving animals, are a lesson in resiliency.
“They set an example for us that with the right connections and the right people involved, you can come back. We had to chop chop, we sold 25 horses in order to feed the rest,” Jenkins says. “We’re never going to be in our heyday where we would take busloads here at TJ Stables because we don’t have the volume of horses, so we had to say ok if a bus arrived, what would we do? And that’s how this Indigenous program started.”
The three-hour Spirit Horse Encounter includes sitting around a campfire near the tipi, listening to First Nations stories and Metis fiddle music, drumming, and a visit with the rare Anishnabe Ojibway Spirit Horses.
Listen to the full interview here: