About

Meet the Founder

Meet Detective Dorothea Leftwich

Dorothea Leftwich, a City of Pittsburgh Police Detective, desired to serve her community on her own personal time. Working full-time in Internal Affairs (Office of Municipal Investigations), as a Polygraph Examiner, and serving part-time on the Mounted Patrol Unit, she wears multiple hats to protect the city.

Through Riding Into The Future, Dorothea strategizes her profession to inspire, motivate, and build trust between the police and the community.

Dorothea hopes to challenge other adult leaders to step up to their specific calling and expertise to lead youth into new arenas.

OUR CORE PHILOSOPHY

Riding is the hook. Trust, patience, and responsibility are the actual curriculum.

A 1,200-pound animal doesn't respond to being rushed, ignored, or talked at. It responds to consistency, patience, and calm follow-through. By earning a horse's trust on the farm, our city youth are practicing the exact same relational muscles they will need for a teacher, a coach, a first boss, or a college application.

MEET THE KEY PLAYERS

The Team Executing The Vision

Avery Nadaj

The Instructor

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Sonya Bell

The Backbone

Sheila Rae Hackinson

The Penn State Director

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Informational Feature

Bridging the Gap to Post-Secondary Education

Riding Into The Future is built on a framework of mutual investment. We provide everything a family needs to participate at zero cost—but we ask our riders for accountability in return.

By maintaining consistent attendance at our sessions and keeping their grades on track, our youth riders unlock a dedicated pathway to post-secondary funding. It is a direct translation of hard work into tangible future security.

The Attendance Benchmark: A minimum of 8 meetings per year to stay active and eligible within the club.

The Academic Benchmark: Maintaining a 2.8 GPA or higher to ensure school remains the top priority.

The Long-Term Reward: Unlocking real post-secondary grant and scholarship dollars applied directly toward college, trade school, or their chosen career path after high school.