Roy Scherer was a cowboy.  From the moment he was born until the moment he died, Roy Scherer was a cowboy.  His first hero was Roy Rogers.  His last hero was Monty Roberts (The Man Who Listens To Horses).  It wasn't the cows Roy loved, or the cowboys - it was the horses.  For Roy, the horses always came first.

So when Roy was unable to go out and be with the horses because he was very ill with cancer, his family and I decided to bring the horses to him.  Beth and Sheila, two miniature horses, were purchased and brought to our home.  Beth and Sheila could walk up to Roy's bedroom window and put their noses in for a horse cookie, a carrot, or a kiss on the nose.  Roy could sit in his recliner and watch them out the window all day.  One morning he even decided he felt strong enough to go outside and feed them - his favorite thing to do with horses - and he did.  It was the last time he ever went outside on his own.

When Roy died, in November 2003, Beth and Sheila became my solace and reason to get up in the morning.  So it was only fitting that they should go to work as therapy and service horses.

Now, Beth and Sheila are the Royal Sunbeams and are spending their days bringing light into many lives.  Their debut at Hospice of Central Iowa's Kavanagh Houses on Christmas Eve 2003 was spectacular.  They were born to this calling, as I was, and their work is a loving memorial to Roy Scherer, the cowboy who was the light of my life.

                                                                  ~ Faith Nettleton-Scherer