A FORMER jockey who suffered a life-changing brain injury over two years ago has used her new-found passion for volunteering, and horses, to brighten the lives of aged care residents in Gawler.

Kate Brooks, now 28, was left in a coma for five days after falling from her mount during a race meeting in Alice Springs in April 2017.

The force of the impact crushed the third nerve in her brain and caused multiple bleeds, and saw her spend two weeks in hospital and a month at Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre recovering from the accident.

She has since undergone three operations on her left eye – the latest surgery having just been completed on Friday – and still suffers from headaches and fatigue.

As part of her recovery, Kate has been volunteering her time at Trevu House aged care home in Gawler, and last week residents got a special surprise when she and her boyfriend, Paul, brought in two ponies – Boo Boo and Holly – for them to pat.

“I thought I would put back into the community, and I’ve always like old people because they don’t judge”, Kate said, with a laugh.

“I’ve seen it before on the news how people take dogs, and other animals in – there’s a former Melbourne Cup winner, Subzero, over in Victoria and he goes to hospitals and nursing homes, and he’s a big horse.

“I figured I’d see if (Trevu House) would be interested, just to give the residents something a bit different.

“I was in a rehab centre for months, so I understand how the days can get a little bit mundane; it’s the same thing most weeks.

“At 12 o’clock it’s lunch time, at 3 o’clock you’ll have a coffee – everything becomes a bit regimental.

“It made me a bit teary because I let (one of the ladies) walk Boo Boo out to the car, and I could just see the sheer joy she had on her face.

“Something so simple that we take for granted, you could just see she enjoyed it so much.”

Having relocated to Darwin to pursue her racing career at the time of her accident, after starting her apprenticeship in Gawler with local trainer Darren Magro, Kate has since moved back to the local area, purchasing a property at Lewiston six months ago.

She has maintained her passion for horses, and while she is no longer able to compete as a jockey due to her injuries, she still loves riding around her property.

However, that isn’t without its risks either.

“I actually broke my collar bone last year; I thought I might’ve learnt the first time, but apparently not,” Kate joked.

“I don’t know if you’d call me brave or crazy, but I’d more tend to say crazy.”

When she’s not volunteering at Trevu House, Kate helps out twice a week at Gary and Nichole Searle’s stable in Gawler, which is where she got her first job in the racing industry many years ago.

She said they’ve been great support in helping her take steps towards returning to work.

“They are just the loveliest people, they were my first bosses in racing, so I knew I could go back to them and they wouldn’t judge me if I couldn’t do anything,” Kate said.

“It’s taken a fair while (to recover from the accident), and I’ve still got a fair bit of weakness in my left side.

“I’m probably 20 per cent blind in my left eye, and I’ve had operations to lift my eye lid because it’s quite droopy; my poor brain is trying to send different signals, but they’re all attached to the wrong pathways, so to speak.

“Sometimes I’ll go to look up, but my eye will go down, or something like that.

“But I know I’m so lucky considering.”