July 13, 2009 would change 18 year-old Chayna DeNicolo’s life forever. Being around horses since before she could remember, the Hampshire IL teen was no stranger to the animal nor was she a stranger to the show ring. Having competed in some of the most prestigious competitions including, the Quarter Horse Congress, Chayna proved to be a skilled equestrian. Unfortunately, all her years of being around horses, knowing them and reading their body language, could not prepare her for what would happen that day.

In early February, Chayna was preparing for the start of her show season with her 10 year-old Quarter Horse Bruno. Taking him out of his stall the morning of the show, Chayna noticed Bruno had developed a sudden lameness. This was uncharacteristic of a horse who had been sound his entire life, so Chayna and her mom took no chances and brought him to the University of Illinois Veterinary Clinic where testing and x-rays were done for a grueling seven hours.

To Chayna’s relief, the diagnosis was that Bruno had an abscess, a collection of pus in an area in the horse’s foot caused by tissue breakdown. The next four months of her summer were spent taking care of Bruno and keeping herself busy riding her trainer’s two-year-old horses.

With the Youth World Show quickly approaching and no horse to ride yet, Chayna and her family needed to know what was really going on inside Bruno’s foot. After taking him in for an MRI, Chayna received the devastating news. Her beloved horse was diagnosed with a fractured navicular bone, which the veterinarian said had gone undetected for more than three years. Bruno’s days under saddle and in the show pen were over.

At the time she received the news, Chayna was helping with a horse sale where the two-year-olds that she had ridden all summer were being sold. To get her mind off Bruno, Chayna’s dad surprised her with a newly purchased two-year-old horse, one she had been working with at the barn. They named the horse Giovanni.

July 13th, the sale had ended, and Chayna was chomping at the bit to go and ride her new horse. She first stopped by Bruno’s stall to see how he was, since the family had not decided what to do with him yet at that point. Shortly after that, she saddled up the two-year-old and brought him into the arena. Noticing that the horse was a little fresh, Chayna decided to warm him up and lunge him. After circling around to the left for a while, she pulled Giovanni into the center to change his direction. As soon as she sent him out to the right, the horse spun a 180 and kicked out at Chayna with both hind legs. He hit her in the face. Chayna was immediately on the ground in a pool of blood.

12 screws, 6 titanium plates, and five days later, Chayna was out of the hospital - having survived a life threatening accident - and started on the slow road to recovery. She had sustained an orbital fracture, her nose was shattered, and her eye socket and cheekbone were smashed.

But, as the old saying goes, “You gotta get back on the horse.” Chayna did just that and more. She found the perfect outlet to tell others about her accident with Giovanni, her broken horse Bruno, and how she “got back on the horse” to recover not only physically, but mentally too.

By creating a group on Facebook, Chayna hoped friends and friends of friends would not only read about her struggles, but share theirs as well.

“This group is dedicated to anyone who has suffered an equine related injury (from falling off to getting kicked), anyone who has ever had a horse receive an un-healable or temporary injury, or anyone who would just like to share memories of a special horse that touched their heart,” Chayna writes on the home page of “Hoofbeats & Heartbeats,” her Facebook group.

Chayna said that her inspiration for making this group came from her struggle to overcome her fear of facing the animal that almost killed her, which made her realize that others have gone through similar psychological battles between themselves and their fears.

“This group [is] to help people overcome obstacles within themselves and their horses,” Chayna said. “I want to help others overcome setbacks that seem impossible because I know exactly what they are going through.”

Although Chayna does not fear horses now, she did find it difficult while recovering. She didn’t lunge Giovanni for four months and felt more tense around horses. “I had acquired so much mistrust within myself and my environment,” Chayna said. “I constantly questioned my ability as a rider and I wondered if I'd ever be the same confident horseback rider I was.”

After gradually spending more and more time at the barn, Chayna regained her trust, lost her fear, and found a new respect for horses. “They are powerful animals and can come undone at any moment,” Chayna said. “The sad part is they don't even mean it. I don't have a problem now, but I am very careful around every horse no matter how well I know them. I'm even careful around Bruno.”

Chayna has several Youtube videos along with her facebook group, which are open to the public to read about her story and her recovery. Those who have joined have shared stories of their accidents and injuries, stories of hope and courage, and accounts of horse-related struggles. Today, Chayna’s group has over 1,200 members and continues to grow each day. Her members range in age from youths to senior citizens and their geographic locations range from down the road to as far away as California.

“I have received numerous personal messages as well as replies to things I've posted on the Hoofbeats & Heartbeats wall and discussion pages,” Chayna said. “The messages range from thank-yous (for making the group and educating people), to comments about my strength and resilience throughout Bruno's and my accidents.” Through all of the connections she has made with people on her Facebook group, the one aspect that ties all the comments together is that Chayna’s page gives them inspiration.

“I want people to take all the bad experiences in their lives and turn them to good,” Chayna said. “I want people to know if they believe in themselves anything is possible, and if they never give up they'll always make it through.”

Laurel Bradley, friend to the DeNicolo family and fellow horse person, decided to nominate Chayna for the 2010 Kohl’s Kids Who Care scholarship program because of her unconditional desire to help others. This scholarship recognizes and rewards young volunteers (ages 6-18) whose efforts have made a positive impact on their communities, according to the Kohl’s Corporation website.

“Chayna receives no compensation for her time, nor did she ever expect to end up nominated for a scholarship, or receive the media attention she has for doing such a selfless act and creating such a wonderful community health and wellness avenue using technology,” said Laurel.

Expanding on her aspiration for helping others, Chayna is currently working on a website incorporating viable mental health links for dealing with the stress of equine related injuries. She is pursuing a degree in psychology to help others with horses to recover from events like hers. Chayna has received an academic scholarship as well as an equestrian team scholarship from Kansas State and will be attending the university in the fall.

Currently, Bruno is still with Chayna, enjoying the pasture life, splashing around in the muck, and growing out his once trimmed and straight mane, while Giovanni has been exposed to the show ring. Bruno has been receiving treatments for his foot, which seem to be having a positive effect at this point. Chayna doesn’t mind that Bruno’s show days are over, she’s just thankful he’s still with her.

Giovanni also found a home and career with Chayna, although keeping him was in question at first. The young horse and Chayna have come a long way with their acceptance of each other. She feels a closer bond with him every time she goes out to see him.

“We contemplated selling him after he kicked me, but I felt it was part of my recovery to overcome my fear of him,” Chayna said. “I don't think I ever once blamed him, he didn't mean it. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and I let my guard down.”

Chayna plans to show him throughout the summer and might even take him to school with her in the fall.