Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathy Friedrich.
Hi Kathy, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I was raised in small towns around southern Minnesota by 2 school teachers. Both parents worked hard and found additional sources of income to support our family of 6 kids. Mom was driven to try to make a difference in the educational system and got her PHD and became a principal in the end of her career. Neither of my parents grew up with much money yet they found ways to go through college and make a difference. They had the same expectation of all of their children. Basically they pushed us to go to college, but we had to figure out the finances ourselves. I ended up receiving a ROTC scholarship to pay for nursing school which led to me serving 5 years as a army nurse.
Highlights of my military service include:
1) I served 2 years at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC.
a) Honor of caring for many WW I and II veterans and Korean war. I learned what nursing was whether caring for people in their final hours or being part of complex care and research.
b) AIDS was new during this time and Walter Reed was our biggest research hospital. AIDS patients were sent to us where we started researching the new drug AZT. During that time we knew it was spread through the blood, but didn’t understand exactly how it was being spread which led to a lot of fear in society and certainly amongst the caregivers. Thankfully due to excellent research the HIV virus is able to be controlled and treatments allow many to live a normal lifespan. Sadly during the years I worked there, we had no cure and AIDS and our patients progressed often into recurring fevers, fatigue, chronic diarrhea and neurological issues like confusion and memory loss along with opportunistic infections such as pneumonia and Kaposi’s sarcoma before death.
c) We were very understaffed and I often worked 6-12 hour shifts a week. I had an opportunity to go to South Korea for a year rather than serving all my time there and took it.
2) I served 1 year at the 121st U.S. Army Evacuation Hospital in Seoul, Korea.
a) One of the most impactful events in my life occurred during this time on March 20th, 1989. A 10-day Team Spirit exercise including 200,000 South Korean and American troops was occurring. During that time a U.S. Marine Corps CH-53D helicopter crashed in a mountainous region killing 19 Marines and injuring 15 others. The injured were evacuated to us at the 121st hospital and almost all of them had very serious burns. I worked on the orthopedic unit which was quickly changed into a burn unit where we received ventilators from the S. Korean hospital. I learned the power of a good team all focused on the same thing. The first 48 hours are the most crucial and by the grace of God and good team work we kept them alive to be rescued by the highly skilled team from Brook Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Tx. They flew an aircraft specifically set up as a burn unit from BAMC to South Korea, loaded up our patients the next day and flew back. I felt such incredible relief and gratitude for that amazing team and was proud of our part in giving them a chance. We heard from them that all of these brave marines survived. I often wonder and pray that they were able to go on with meaningful lives filled with the love and care they deserve. Their journey can’t have been easy.
b) After being part of that event, I chose to become an ICU nurse and received 4 months of excellent training by the army. Shortly after returning from the course to Ft. Ord in Monterey, CA, I was told I would be deployed to the Gulf War in Saudi Arabia.
3) Saudi Arabia highlights.
a) We were stationed next to King Fahd International airport which wasn’t yet open for commercial operations. Our air force flew out of King Fahd during the war. Our biggest threat was scud missiles. Once we heard an incredibly loud explosion which we thought was a bomb. It ended up being a Patriot missile at the airport which was shot off to intercept a scud missile coming our way. Fortunately this war caused few U. S. casualties.
b) Our primary patients were those from accidents and wounded Iraqi prisoners. Caring for both populations had a significant impact on me.
4) Post military Life
a) I held many positions in health systems mostly in MN after the military years. I mostly worked full time while raising 3 children. I held various leadership positions in MN including: 1) Fairview Home Care and Hospice Quality Manager and Performance Improvement Consultant positions, 2) Director of Continuous Improvement at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center and 3) Director of Neuroscience Clinical Programs at Allina Health.
b) These positions provided plenty of challenge and growth yet I never felt the same level of comradery and purpose as I did when in the military. This I believe is not uncommon with those of us who served.
c) Then came COVID. Like many people my career was impacted by being laid off during COVID. I did a lot of soul searching to try to once again find purpose in a career. At my age, options were becoming more limited, and I knew I wouldn’t get higher levels of leadership positions in health systems.
5) Gateway Meadows equine-Assisted Services
Without getting into details I was inspired to start my own nonprofit and founded Gateway Meadows Equine-Assisted Services with a primary focus of providing a place of healing for our Veterans. We began individual and group sessions for veterans in April 2023 and continue to grow our services for veterans free of charge and their families and first responders at reduced charges. In 2025 we began focusing more on building other services to help bring in funding along with donations to support Veterans services. A primary focus for additional services is organizational workshops focusing on leadership, team building and wellness. All workshops are individualized to meet the organizations needs.
e) Gateway Meadows has provided me with a new passion which utilizes the skills I developed over the years and has reunited me with those who served or are serving in our armed forces. The responses we get from Veterans and other clients makes me know we are doing important meaningful work. Our environment combines a peaceful nature environment with horses and knowledgeable clinicians, facilitators, equine specialists and volunteers. We provide Holistic Health services covering physical, mental, social and spiritual health.
f) We have many stories of healing and growth from our clients which continue to drive our determination to make a difference.
1) There are many stories of veterans healing and improving over time with us. Multiple veterans continue to come back after their initial group sessions. Veterans are welcome to come to our weekly open session on Wednesdays from 10:00-12:00 (These may be on hold during the coldest months) or schedule a individual session year round. Examples include: 1) a combat veteran with extreme anxiety was working with our coach/facilitator while partnering with Poseidon our draft horse. Poseidon was pawing at the gravel displaying stress and we started a breathing exercise taking deep breaths. As we breathed Poseidon stopped pawing, gradually lowered his head to the ground and yawned. The veteran then began to groom him while Poseidon relaxed and enjoyed it. The veteran expressed amazement at how calm he felt even with this large horse who he initially was hesitant to approach. He like other participants stated there is something happening they can’t explain but they feel peace which usually escapes them. 2) A gentleman who experienced trauma in his youth and recently as an adult started sessions with the hope he could improve beyond the plateau he was experiencing with traditional mental health therapy. After several sessions he stated he has talked with his oldest daughter more in the past three weeks than the last 25 years of her life. He went from not being able to approach the horses in the first session to having hands on them for an hour. 3) Although we work with a smaller number of children, we have received tremendous feedback seeing growth in our mental health and occupational health participants. We intend to offer more group sessions for children in the Spring of 2026 and hope especially to have children of veterans attend knowing that families make big sacrifices and have increased struggles based on having a parent in the military.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
My biggest struggles in my career were probably the layoffs. Healthcare is no exception when it comes to being laid off. I was laid off twice from leadership positions during staffing reductions. I was laid off from Allina when they closed down the neuroscience service line. That position provided a good salary and security. When I lost the job it became clear that I was probably not going to get a position at that level again at this point in my career. I was lucky enough to get a good position working with a small organization working with critical access hospitals across the nation when COVID hit. I once again was laid off and found myself providing COVID vaccines just to get some income.
As is so often the case, those forced changes allowed me to reassess what I wanted and needed from a career, and I started Gateway Meadows EAS with a leap of faith and little money. Money is always a worry when you run a nonprofit, but at every step I have received what I needed to keep moving forward. Honestly my faith in God and other people has grown with this experience. There is nothing better than focusing on helping others. As many say, I get back more than I give.
This work is very dependent on volunteers and the support of the local community and donors. The need to keep reaching out to others in many ways keeps you humble but also connected in such meaningful ways. I appreciate where I am at now more than at any other time in my life. I am grateful!
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am the Founder/Executive Director and Nurse coach of Gateway Meadows EAS. I am certified by the American Holistic Nurses Association as a Board Certified Nurse Coach (BC-NC). I am also a Certified Professional with Arenas for Change (ARCH) and a Certified Equine Assisted Learning Professional for Organizational Development with HorseWorks. I personally focus my practice on Holistic Health coaching (physical, mental, social and spiritual health) of Veterans and their families, First Responders, healthcare professionals and other adults offering individual and group sessions as well as organizational workshops. As an army nurse veteran and nurse who had many years helping healthcare organizations improve, I utilize the skills I gained to help individuals and organizations move forward.
Gateway Meadows has additional providers offering mental health, occupational therapy and coaching services for individuals and groups of children and adults. Workshops are provided by skilled facilitators with many years of leadership experience.
As a nonprofit we are proud to offer free services to veterans and discounted services when possible to first responders.
Sessions at Gateway Meadows include horses in groundwork activities, no riding. We also pride ourselves in our well maintained property with ponds and walking paths allowing nature to help with healing and growth. Gateway Meadows EAS has a wonderful location in being a suburb of Minneapolis and yet located on 64 acres to allow for a unique peaceful environment so close to the cities.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
The Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area offers so many of the same opportunities as larger metro areas with less of the disadvantages of larger metropolitan areas. There are wonderful dining opportunities, arts, sports and 4 seasons to enjoy variable outdoors activities. We have many parks and green spaces important for healthy living.
We are also a well educated community with good schools and universities and opportunities for everyone to grow.
In recent years crimes have increased and people are less comfortable going into areas of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The increased drugs and individuals suffering from them are also a very concerning issue.
Pricing:
- All services for Veterans or active duty military are free.
- Services for First Responders are discounted whenever possible
- Workshop discounts are available for organizations who serve Veterans or first responders.
- Services for others are typical market prices to work with clinicians and certified professionals working with the horses.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://gatewaymeadows.org/
- Instagram: @gatewaymeadows
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GatewayMeadowsEAS/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gateway-meadows-equine-assisted-services/people/?facetNetwork=F
