Famous fashion line shines the light on young people working at a stable in Philly

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Friday, May 10, 2019
Famous fashion line shines the light on young people working at a stable in Philly
Famous fashion line shines the light on young people working at a stable in Philly. Sharrie Williams reports during Action News at 4 p.m. on May 10, 2019.

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A horse stable in the middle of Philadelphia is busy taking care of injured horses and it's all run by young people. The work underway at the stable recently caught the eye of the iconic fashion line, Ralph Lauren.

"Throughout the years it's become my second home I'm here all the time," said Kaela Prescott.

And it's here at this stable where lives are being changed.

This wide open space of fields and trees with dozens of horses isn't in the suburbs but in the city. It's the Chamounix Equestrian Center in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park.

Kaela is part of the Work to Ride program.

It introduces kids to the world of horses and provides a lesson in responsibility, how to train them ride them and care for them.

Lezlie Hiner is the director of the program.

"We've been here for 25 years, and it's an equestrian program for youth at risk in Philadelphia," she said.

"I always loved animals, horses and stuff like that but I never thought I'd be doing this. I didn't even know there were barns in Philly," said Kaela.

Not only are the youth being introduced to the basics of equestrian life, they're also learning the game of Polo.

Daymar Rosser started coming to the stable when he was only 5.

"If I didn't have this program I'm not sure what I'd be doing right now," he said.

Born and raised in West Philadelphia, Rosser who's now 24, attended Roger Williams University where he was on the Polo team and won a National Championship. And it all started at this urban stable.

"The program is giving me a lot of opportunity to meet a bunch of people great polo players and travel the world polo man has been my passport around the world," said Rosser.

And now famed clothing designer Ralph Lauren is shining a light on the stable and the amazing work being done here.

The young men and women are featured in ad campaign. Some are now paid models for the luxury brand.

"It's amazing. "I still think about it to this day and we're raffle around models. I never thought I would be a model," said Daymar.

The hope is their images and their stories will take down some of the barriers and encourage more young people from the city to expand their mind and their possibilities in life.

"We want this to be more than just a place where you come up and ride horses. Ralph Lauren has started something really big for us and we want to keep pushing that and make things better for this program," added Daymar.