Molly Sweeney, the president of Self-Improvement through Riding Education (SIRE) in Houston, TX, self-implemented until her organization could send a team to a workshop. Now, she says, SIRE is no longer a secret in the community, and they are getting swamped with interest and volunteers. This brief audio clip is taken from a February 2006 conference call with Terry Axelrod, founder and CEO of Benevon.

Click here to listen.

SIRE, a therapeutic riding center for people with disabilities, had been in Houston since 1983 but wasn't that well-known in the community. Then they started offering monthly Point of Entry^® tours called "Roundups" and getting the word out about what they do. Word spread fast.

Sweeney said the public relations they've received since following the model has been incredible.

"I'll walk into a store with my SIRE shirt on and people will say, 'Oh yeah. I want to volunteer. When is your next volunteer training?'" she said.

She said they didn't expect to get so popular so fast.

Footnote: A week before their Ask Event^™ in February, SIRE was told they would have to move because the hotel overbooked their room. For many groups, this would have been a disaster. But by using the Benevon Model, SIRE was spared major headaches. The Table Captains were able to alert all the guests about the change, and the event was a huge success. They received a $30,000 lead gift, more than $90,000 in gifts and pledges, at least three potential board members, and the hotel that overbooked the event underwrote the whole program.