About The Beer Ranch
This is the place you’ve been seeking…
Horse Magic & Nature Therapy | Entrepreneurial Development
The Beer Ranch is a private family ranch and farmstead located one hour South of Kansas City, Missouri. Spread out over 760+ beautiful acres, the ranch grows crops, livestock, and dreams. Our mission is to work in partnership with nature, animals and humans to build sustainable, joyful ways to express, nourish, create and manifest that which is sought with true spirit.
The ranch is home to multiple speices of domestic animals including horses, ponies, cattle, goats. chickens, guinea fowl, ducks, geese, dogs, and cats. We also have a thriving wildlife population featuring deer, turkey, coyote, fox, bobcat, and other native Missouri speices. 17 ponds provide ample space for aquatic creatures and we have an active bird population that includes hawks, owls, and bald eagles.
We have 194 acres of row crop land which, under the supervision of farmer Scott McElwain, grows corn, soybeans, and wheat.
The ranch has two homes, one where our family lives and a 16×80 house trailer for guests. We have over 13 miles of improved trails for motorcycles and hiking (by invitation only).
Meet the Magic Horses of The Beer Ranch
Prince
Soul Speaker
Prince is a master at his craft. He will hold you if you need to cry, make you smile when you have a breakthrough, and encourage you to find the depths of your soul’s truth.
King
Gentle Magician
King is a gifted magician. He will show up perfectly and in just the way you need him to during your session. He is gentle, but direct in his guidance. Working with him will change your life.
Colonel
Brave Little Big Man
Don’t let Colonel’s size fool you, he’s a commander of bravery. He will walk beside you through your darkest shadows and never flinch.
Tron
Inspirational Guardian
Tron is a draft cross which makes him very large in size and presence. He is a gentle giant however, and he loves to connect you to your higher power and inspiration.
Jet
Wise Friend
Jet loves humans. Even as a foal he would leave his pasture mates to spend time among the two-legged. He is a wise counsel and sweet friend to all who work with him.
Cush
Round Pen Master
Cush is one of our older herd members and he is on elder care which means he lives close to the house so we can tend to his needs. He works primarily with those who need to build their confidence through his mastery of roundpen work.
Uno
Comedian & Confidant
Do you have a boundary that you’re always blowing through and letting people push you around? Uno will help you sort that out! He is a master (and comedian) at pushing just the right buttons to trigger your boundary issue so you’ll know where to clearly draw the line.
Trucker
Greeter
Trucker is one of our official pony greeters at the ranch. He will meet with you (unless he’s otherwise engaged) as soon as you arrive and make sure you have some great equine energy to start your session. And yes, he’s the kid that didn’t brush his hair for picture day, lol.
Diesel
Powerful Goddess
Do you need to learn how to stand in your power no matter what? Diesel’s story is one that will teach you what that means for a horse. She doesn’t choose to work with many clients, but if you are one, she has a powerful message for you.
Jasmine
Beautiful Queen
Like all mares, Jasmine chooses who she wants to interact with in any given moment. She is just beginning to work with clients and she is very choosey still. If she chooses you, the honor is sincere.
Bella
Kind Mother
Bella carries deep mother energy — her way is kind and peaceful, although she does still have strong opinions (what mother doesn’t?!). If she chooses to work with you, you will be blessed with her kind energy and wise way of being.
Able
Wise Introvert
Able is the biggest introvert of the herd. He doesn’t often choose to work with clients, but when he does he makes it very clear to me that you are his client.
Ponyta
Coach Apprentice
Ponyta has made it clear he wants to work with humans, but he is still figuring out what that looks like for him. I’ll update here when he chooses his niche and path.
Blackjack
Retired Guru
Blackjack has let me know he is mostly in retirement. (I may have greater hopes than him about his return to occasional coaching, lol). He will happily accept scratches and pets, however.
Deacon
Still Deciding
Deacon has been through a multitude of homes in his lifetime. For now, he’s learning how to be a quiet herd member with the help of King and Tron. He is not currently working with clients.
Other Herd Members
Many horses and ponies make their lives here on the ranch. Some that you may or may not meet are:
In the yard:
Cadance (the Yard Pony and Greeter)
In the pony pasture:
Sparrow (the The Matriach)
Patriot (best friend of Poneta)
Viggo (yes after Viggo Mortenson)
Tulip
Mayflower
Little Sebastian
Trinity
How we Partner with Horses to Help You Get Out of Your Own Way
There are a lot of equine assisted learning and equine assisted therapy programs out in the world today. The one we practice on The Beer Ranch is The Equine Gestalt Coaching Method (EGCM or Equine Gestalt).
Kim has been through a two-year intensive program with multiple hands-on, mentor assisted, real-world Equine Gestalt Sessions. She is in the process of taking her skills to the next level with advanced training in Gestalt through the Touched by a Horse program in Colorado. At the conclusion of this program, she will have completed an additional 2 years of advanced study in Gestalt, human dynamics, somatics, and equine assisted trauma resolution.
The Equine Gestalt Coaching Method® was developed by Melisa Pearce, a core founder since 1989, of the horse-human healing movement. The experiential nature of the method involves the horse as an active partner with the coach in the client’s exploratory process. The integrative approach of the equine’s interaction combined with positive coaching, somatic awareness, guidance and Gestalt methodology, assist the client in examining their life and choices made with a focus on designing a positive future.
EGCM is scientifically proven through an independent study (you can read about here) to help clients (thats YOU my friend) feel more hopeful about the future — so much so that 96% of people said they would do another EGCM session. Hundreds of people participated in the study and thousands have experienced the changes Equine Gestalt can create.
EGCM is trauma-informed care meaning it takes into consideration that your responses and beliefs may have formed during a trauma you may not even be aware of and this needs to, at all times, be taken into account.
Equine Gestalt is an amazing way to resolve trauma, expel limiting beliefs, and finish the unfinished business that is holding you back from achieving your dreams. Because it is experiential not talk based, one EGCM session can create long lasting positive change for all types of life challenges including depression, anxiety, grief, life transistions, conflict mediation, leadership, personal growth, and more.
The Past and Present
The Beer Ranch was founded in 1964 by Louise and Max Beer. Over the years it has served as a working cattle ranch and farm. Since 2005, the ranch has been operated by Kimberly Beer, Max and Louise’s daughter. Kim’s son, Nick, is a partner in the ranch.The ranch not only features cattle and crops, but has also become a place for fun and a sanctuary for healing the human spirit. Every year, The Beer Ranch hosts a number of events focused on finding joy — whether that joy is experienced going 70 miles an hour down a dirt track on a motorcycle or in the quiet comfort of a horse in a roundpen.
