The Road Back

For as long as he can remember, Nick Brawner has always had someone in his corner. It began with his father--his best friend and the man who taught him the true meaning of empathy. Years later, it was Josh Bryan, who helped him through his early stages of recovery and showed him how a profound peace can by found by working with horses. Just over a year ago, Brawner lost both men within a span of a few weeks. It was a period of staggering grief, but by coming out...

From the outside looking in, Rachel Arnold had everything going for her. Married in her early 20s, she received certification as a veterinary technician, secured her bachelor's degree from Auburn University, followed by her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) from Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine, and had welcomed her son into the world. But inwardly, each step forward in Arnold's personal life and career was fueled by a need to prove that she had grown beyond a childhood of trauma which stemmed from a contentious relationship with her father....

Brandon Pennington learned from an early age that stability was never guaranteed. Moving between the homes of parents and grandparents who were almost all battling addiction, he lived in a world where the adults meant to protect him were often lost to their own struggles. Some of his earliest memories were of staring through the crack in the bathroom door, watching to make sure a family member under the influence wasn't going to cause themselves further harm. In those moments he made a promise to himself: whatever his future held,...

For all the incredible experiences Blane Servis remembers from when his father John campaigned champion Smarty Jones, there were a few less-than-comfortable memories too. Take, for instance, the time during Smarty Jones's run for the Triple Crown when Servis's school hosted a pep rally and made a teenaged Servis the guest of honor. As a self-described socially awkward kid, stepping into the spotlight felt a bit more like a nightmare than a celebration. In high school, Servis discovered that drinking was the easiest solution to overcoming his social anxiety. Later,...

When Minaret Station (Instilled Regard) jogged back after his stunning upset victory in the GII Bourbon Stakes at Keeneland on Oct. 6, one of the first people to greet him was trainer Will Walden, followed immediately by Tyler Maxwell. The victory was not only poignant in what it represented, with the 2-year-old colt earning an automatic berth to the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf, but also in how it brought things full circle for Maxwell who, at one time, was seemingly a lost soul until he was saved by the...

A good barber knows how to create conversation. After years of standing over his chair trimming hair and chatting with clients, John Daugherty has always prided himself on his ability to talk to just about anybody. "It didn't matter if it was a doctor, the mayor, or the homeless guy around the corner, I could talk to everyone," he said. So when Daugherty found himself in a prison staring at the adolescent faces of his two sons at a loss for words, his inability to find the right thing to...

It was during the moments after Billy Major came face-to-face with death, and momentarily lost the battle, that he knew something needed to change. On November 14, 2022, as he awoke on the floor of a motel room after overdosing on heroin, Major felt the hand of God rest upon his shoulder. And this time, he reached over to take it. "I woke up laying on the floor in front of my refrigerator. I saw people sitting on the bed, some of my friends, and there was a gentleman with...

Robert Osbourne was spending a few weeks helping out at the Stable Recovery house at Taylor Made, taking some time to reset and perhaps figure out some goals for his life, when one afternoon the program's director Christian Countzler walked into the living room looking as white as a ghost. This was a little over a year ago, just as the calendar was turning over to 2023, and at the time Stable Recovery was relying on funding from the Kentucky Career Center to keep the fledgling project up and running....

Stable Recovery is a rehabilitation program in Lexington, Kentucky that provides a safe living environment and a peer-driven, therapeutic community for men in the early stages of recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. Along with going to 12-step meetings and support groups, residents attend the School of Horsemanship at Taylor Made Farm to learn a new vocation in the Thoroughbred industry. The School of Horsemanship is a project that was created by Taylor Made two years ago and has since seen over 100 men go through the program. Many of...

Stable Recovery is a rehabilitation program in Lexington, Kentucky that provides a safe living environment and a peer-driven, therapeutic community for men in the early stages of recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. Along with going to 12-step meetings and support groups, residents attend the School of Horsemanship at Taylor Made Farm to learn a new vocation in the Thoroughbred industry. The School of Horsemanship is a project that was created by Taylor Made two years ago and has since seen over 100 men go through the program. Many of...

Stable Recovery is a rehabilitation program in Lexington, Kentucky that provides a safe living environment and a peer-driven, therapeutic community for men in the early stages of recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. Along with going to 12-step meetings and support groups, residents attend the School of Horsemanship at Taylor Made Farm to learn a new vocation in the Thoroughbred industry. The School of Horsemanship is a project that was created by Taylor Made two years ago and has since seen over 100 men go through the program. Many of...

Stable Recovery is a rehabilitation program in Lexington, Kentucky that provides a safe living environment and a peer-driven, therapeutic community for men in the early stages of recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. Along with going to 12-step meetings and support groups, residents attend the School of Horsemanship at Taylor Made Farm to learn a new vocation in the Thoroughbred industry. The School of Horsemanship is a project that was created by Taylor Made two years ago and has since seen over a 100 men go through the program. Many...