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12/21/2010 11:36 AM

Poinsettias supply Down Home Ranchers with holiday spirit

By: Bonnie Gonzalez

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Taking care of chickens and other chores at Down Home Ranch always puts a smile on the caregiver's faces.

It's a place where people with intellectual disabilities can live and work.

Founder Jerry Horton said residents gain a sense of confidence there.

"Over time they slowly but surely learn how to do these jobs, [and they] learn how to do them well. With that comes confidence and pride and a job well done that we all experience," Horton said.

At this time of year, a little holiday spirit also gets sprinkled into the mix.

Residents like Rebekah Williams like to help with the poinsettias grown at the ranch.

"I help with the flowers and the deliveries," Williams said.

That help is much needed with rows of plants that fill the greenhouses.

"We now grow 15,000 poinsettias, sell and deliver them throughout the Central Texas area, all the way to Killeen, Fort Hood, down to San Marcos and San Antonio," Horton said.

It's one of the largest productions coming out of the ranch and there are no plans for downsizing.

"We're hoping to add to that. We need charitable funds to build two or three more greenhouses and that means more poinsettias, more jobs, more work, more income," Horton said.

The Down Home Ranch is a non-profit organization. It currently needs volunteers to help deliver poinsettias.