Bill Moses suffers from a very rare blocked artery on his spine causing him to be paralyzed from the waist down. But you'd never guess by seeing him on horseback, part of therapy he receives at The Bergmann Centre, which is a therapeutic horseback riding center for people with mental and physical challenges.

"So many of our riders have been told all their life that they can't do things, you cant play football, you cant play basketball. Here they can really ride a horse and we teach them to ride to whatever their capabilities are," says Dave Brown, a volunteer at The Bergmann Centre.

There is a hydraulic lift built specifically for therapeutic horseback riding, it can hold up to 500 pounds to help people, often times paralyzed like Bill, to get on and off the horse.

Instructors also help Moses stay balanced and use muscles out of his comfort zone. He also has a wheel chair, which is the only one of its kind in Rockford, to help raise him up to eye level, travel up to seven miles per hour, and even go down stairs.

Moses says, "It operates as a standard wheelchair, it operates in 4-wheel drive where i can go up a 5-inch curb even though there is no cut out, and through 8- inches of snow."

The Bergmann Centre has around 50 riders and 13 certified instructors. Its main philosophy according to Moses is, "Don't let anyone tell you what you can't accomplish tell me your dreams and I will encourage you, I'm your cheerleader."

The Bergmann Centre is $250 for a 10-week session, but scholarships are available.They also just certified 13 new instructors which means they can increase the number of riders at the barn.

For more information, you can call the Bergmann Centre at 815-765-2113