“I like what Mr. Rogers used to say,” said Tinia Creamer, president and founder of Heart of Phoenix Equine Rescue. “Look for the helpers. It's kind of wild how many people are out there looking to do something and feel good about it at the end of the day.” 

Creamer’s vast network of “helpers” has allowed her to grow Heart of Phoenix from an inspired idea into a full-fledged non-profit organization with a global reach and immense impact. Founded in 2009, Heart of Phoenix has saved over 1,500 horses and become one of the largest equine rescue efforts in the world. On any given day, the Cabell County facility, along with trainer facilities in other locations, houses up to 150 horses at a time. Funded entirely by charitable donations and operated by a handful of full time employees and hundreds of part-time volunteers, Heart of Phoenix is the only horse rescue covering all of Appalachia and adopts out horses all over the United States. It was also the first successful rescue operation in West Virginia, paving the way for several others in the state to grow since. Such an enormous undertaking is only made possible by Creamer’s steadfast vision. 

“We're here to save horses,” she said. “That's what we do. The way that has registered with people who have nothing else in common, and the relationships they build on the back of that, has been really amazing. The number of people that, through an adoption, or through volunteering, or training, have really found a sense of purpose and who unify around that is amazing. It's hard to find that in the world, and we have people from all different political views and backgrounds and socioeconomic statuses.”

Creamer is quick to emphasize that, while saving horses is the first and foremost mission, the benefit of this work to humans can be life-changing as well. 

“Watching people come in and grow in horsemanship has been great. We have some really great trainers that have built careers that go back to meeting us in 2017, turning what was a hobby into a sustainable career where they can pick and choose their clients and build their barn on the network that they found through us. Knowing that you've been able to see really good horse people grow, build thriving businesses, that's incredible.” 

A native of Lincoln County, West Virginia, Creamer fell in love with all-things horses at a very young age. 

“I always was a horse-loving little girl. I read all the black stallion books. I took riding lessons. I was obsessed with them. My family did buy me my own horse, and I had him for the last part of my teens, but I actually moved away to Florida for some years, and didn't have horses. I really thought that was part of my past; I was that kid that loved horses, but they’re just not gonna fit in my life now.”

Creamer moved back to West Virginia at the end of 2006, only to face tragedy a month later. Three of her younger siblings were among the nine people killed in Emmons Apartment Complex fire in downtown Huntington on January 13, 2007. 

“I lost my three youngest siblings in that fire, and I was there. I got there, but I couldn't get them out. They were 14, 17, and 19. If you would have asked me about myself and my childhood, I would have told you that I was the oldest sister to these kids, and I loved horses. I really felt like I didn't have much connection to anything else. Like, what are we gonna do now? What is there now? I think that really led me to be willing to think about horses again” 

Using this desire to reconnect with her past, Creamer decided to turn her passion for horses into a lifelong pursuit of healing and advocacy. Since founding Heart of Phoenix in 2009, Creamer has become an incredibly active and visible spokesperson for equine welfare around the world. Her work has been featured in magazines like Horse Illustrated. She’s received the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’s esteemed Equine Welfare Award and been invited to speak at the American Horse Council’s national conferences. Heart of Phoenix was even the subject of a multi-episode documentary on Horse.TV, and received accreditation from the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance and the Standardbred Transition Alliance for the organization’s quality of care and fiscal responsibility. This accreditation is an honor and process that she takes very seriously. 

“It's intense and it takes months. You have to reapply every two years. Every month, they ask for documentation to verify our processes and care in detail. They come out to visit. They see everything you do. They independently speak to your veterinarians. You have to supply receipts for everything. It's an incredible burden that you take on.” 

For Creamer, the burden of independent accreditation is worth the time and effort. 

“It's important because we are donation funded. And we don't have huge donors. There's no federal funding, no state funding. Me telling you we're doing a good job means nothing. Why wouldn't I tell you? I'm the founder and director! We really take that very seriously. We think it's important that nonprofits are willing to hold themselves to a standard. Every dollar that comes in is going toward animal advocacy. And it is not hard to find instances where that is not the case.”

As Heart of Phoenix approaches two decades of equine advocacy and rescue, what may go unnoticed is the significant economic impact the organization has had on the area. Creamer estimates that the Cabell County facility puts over $150,000 into the local veterinary economy every year. The organization spends a staggering $7,000 per month on locally grown hay, as well as $3,500 a month in grains from a local feed facility. With those costs rising, Creamer admits that the current economic conditions in the country have put a strain on operations, especially in the rehoming aspect of their work.

“I think the cost of living is killing people. From 2021 to 2025, we had 1600 applications, over 300 yearly. We’ve seen about half that this year. And that's scary because we've seen a huge increase in requests to take horses in, That's the hard part about Animal Rescue. We didn't turn a single horse away from 2019 through 2022. We accepted every single horse. But from 2023 on, we've had to be more discretionary. And this year, even more so. And I hate to turn horses away because if we're saying no, there isn't anywhere else to go.”

Despite a myriad of challenges, Heart of Phoenix continues to be a shining example of what is possible when caring individuals come together, united by compassion for animals. For Creamer, doing this work in her home state makes it all that much more satisfying. 

“At the end of a blog I wrote when we first became a nonprofit, I said ‘Perhaps, if enough people become aware, we can really create change.’ And it's really great to look back at that, 16 years later, and say we did. And we do this work right here in West Virginia. I’m very fond of Appalachia and, having done something radically positive and big, I want people to realize you really can do things with excellence and do things well, right here.”

For more information on Heart of Phoenix Equine Rescue, visit their website and follow them on social media!

Check out the full photo gallery from our visit to Heart of Phoenix Equine Rescue here!