Amy Ranker rolled up her sleeves and got in her Tom Sawyer mode Monday morning to apply white paint to some fence posts bordering a Donegal Township field.

By the afternoon, the Hempfield resident was inside an adjoining barn, dusting down the stall of Bria, a 21-year-old Norwegian Fjord mare.

Ranker was one of 10 volunteers from area companies who spent several hours at the Stoneybrook Therapeutic Riding Center, helping to catch up on work as part of the United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Week of Caring campaign.

She received paid time off from Canonsburg-based Equitrans Midstream to pitch in at the nonprofit riding center. The 12-year-old center offers therapy sessions for children and adults with special physical, emotional or developmental challenges by matching them with one of 13 trained horses.

Depending on the client’s needs, interactions with a horse can range from grooming it to riding it while guided by an instructor.

Ranker jumped at the chance to volunteer with an organization in her home county. “I have a soft spot for kids with special needs,” she said.

Tereasa Rerko of Bullskin , a partner in the local Quatrini Rafferty law firm, joined with several other representatives of the practice to lend a hand at Stoneybrook. “I love to paint and I love to be outdoors,” she said as she coated fence posts at one of the center’s half dozen fields.

Two other volunteers from the firm, Cristy Marsh of Unity and Katrina Stoots of Mt. Pleasant , teamed up to paint 20 of the posts in about 90 minutes. Each painted one side of the posts, so they didn’t have to reach through the fence with their brushes.

“We have a huge amount of pasture for our horses to be able to run and play and graze in,” said Amanda Sloskey, community outreach coordinator at the Stoneybrook Foundation. “Unfortunately, sometimes it takes volunteers to come out and help us get things done.”

The sweeping and dusting the United Way crew completed inside the barn is important for preventing fires, Sloskey explained.

“We’re just happy to help,” said John Rea, WestPenn Power regional president and Westmoreland region campaign chair for United Way. “It’s just amazing how many people will raise their hands and volunteer to do something like this. We just take on any kind of job that the local agency finds for us.”

Mitsubishi Chemical Advanced Materials of Delmont also was represented by volunteers.

The spruce-up at Stoneybrook is one of 75 in-person or virtual projects more than 700 people collectively have volunteered to complete across Westmoreland, Allegheny, Butler, Armstrong and Fayette counties as part of the Week of Caring, continuing through Saturday.

“We’re helping to get things accomplished that the nonprofits themselves aren’t able to do because of resources,” said Alyssa Cholodofsky, Westmoreland region director of United Way. “There’s still time to volunteer and sign up. There’s so much need in the community.”

Visit unitedway4u.org to learn more about volunteer opportunities through the regional United Way.

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