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In This Issue
New Region 10 Rep
Arizona
Colorado
New Mexico
Region 10 Conference
Quick Links
Contacts:Region Rep and State Chairs 
Stay Connected 
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Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International



Title Sponsor: Purina, the official feed of PATH Intl.
Ronda Carver New Region 10 Rep 
Happy New Year!

I wanted to take the opportunity to introduce myself as the incoming PATH Intl. Region 10 Rep. and give a big welcome to our two new state chairs Donna Tolbert (NM State Chair) and Hannah La Pointe (CO Eastern Slope State Chair). My name is Ronda Ward, and it was a pleasure to serve as NM State Chair for the last four years. I am a PATH Intl. Certified Registered Instructor/ESMHL, Mentor and am EAGALA Level 1 certified and currently offer consultant services. I have a BS degree in Psychology (earned a full university rodeo scholarship), and I was born and raised in a traditional southwestern rodeo/ranch family in New Mexico. 

I was previously the Equestrian Program Coordinator of one of the Paul Newman's Hole in the Wall Gang Camps, The Painted Turtle, in Lake Hughes, CA for 2 years before re-locating back to NM. I served on the (TRAV) board of directors Therapeutic Riding Association of Virginia for 2 years and was the Founder/Executive Director of the Phoenix Rising Therapeutic Riding Center in Catlett, VA. I worked as the Equine Specialist in a psychotherapy program for at-risk youth at the AZ humane society (Phoenix, AZ) and began my therapeutic riding career as a certified therapeutic riding instructor for TEACH in Eloy, AZ in 2001. 

I wanted to share some of my background with you and encourage centers/members to reach out to your state chairs and Region 10 Rep with any of your ideas, needs, and challenges. I look forward to serving as your new Region Rep and welcome any input to better help support you!

Thank you
I wanted to give a most heartfelt thanks to Jenny Nell for serving as our Region 10 Rep for last four years, and we wish her the best in her new endeavor as a new advocate of the PATH Intl. Equine Welfare Committee!
Arizona
Horses Help hosted the Winter Classic Special Olympics and Barn Show on Dec. 16th. On this day Horses Help riders along with other riders from Special Olympics Delegations competed in various classes such as, Trial, Equitation, and Showmanship. During this time participants rode or walked their horses through a pattern in the main arena to demonstrate the skills that they had been practicing the previous few months. The event was open house style where attendees could watch the participant's demo rides and also enjoy a fun day filled with vendor booths!

On December 3rd the annual WAHL "Dare to Dream" Shootout took place at Ben Avery Park and the home of the Royce Anderson Arizona Cowboy Mounted Shooting Association Arena. The event benefits the scholarship drive for Horses Help Participants honoring Preston Kiley's rider legacy. The event pairs our special needs riders with the real live cowboys and cowgirls who form amazing teams and compete in a three stage competition. The fact that the WAHL Corporation and the Arizona Cowboy Mounted Shooters Association provides this wonderful event designed especially for our special needs riders is a great testimony for their amazing sense of community. Dream Big and participate in Life!

Reminder that the Arizona State Meeting will be held this year on January 28-29 (8-4) at Horses Help, 2601 East Rose Garden Lane, Phoenix, AZ. All people and organizations working in the EAAT field are welcome to attend. RSVP to [email protected] (cost $25.00). Pre-State meeting educational opportunity by Strides to Success (Equine Assisted Learning Educational two day seminar) on January 26-27 (8:30-5). For more information contact [email protected]. Cost normally $400, reduced for Arizona to 249. CEUs available - 18.

Save the Date! PATH Intl. Registered Instructor OSWSC to be held February 8, 2017 at Horses Help, 2601 E Rose Garden Lane, Phoenix, AZ 85050
Colorado
Welcome! to Hannah La Pointe our new CO Eastern Slope State Chair. Beth Godbey will still serve as our CO Western Slope State Chair. Hannah is a PATH Intl. Certified Registered Instructor and equine specialist. Hannah received her MSW in 2013 and currently works for the Children, Youth, and Family Division in Larimer County, CO, an organization that has been a leader in the field on trauma-informed practice in childhood welfare work in Colorado. 

Save the date! for the Rocky Mountain Horse Expo (March 10-12th) at the National Western Show Complex Denver, CO Click here for info. Great opportunity to acquire CEUs!
New Mexico  Happenings  
Donna Tolbert (NM State Chair) founded Horsin' Around Therapeutic Riding Center in 2005 after she became a PATH Intl. Certified Registered Instructor. Donna currently serves as the Program Director/Lead Instructor at her center and is the first center in Valencia County to offer Therapeutic riding services to special needs individuals! Donna is a lifelong horse enthusiast that enjoys rodeo and the event of barrel racing. At a young age, Donna was introduced to horses in a therapeutic riding setting by her mother Linda Hofheins when her mother would take her and her pony "Red Beard" to the Los Lunas Hospital and Training School for the clients to visit. "I wasn't aware at such a young age that we were doing therapeutic riding, although I was very aware of the benefits that these individuals were receiving and how it brightened their day! It has been a huge blessing to find my calling in life to be a therapeutic riding instructor and be part of PATH Intl. and look forward to serving as your NM State Chair!"

The NM State meeting was held on January 7, 2017, hosted by New Mexico Center for Therapeutic Riding at Hipico Santa Fe in Santa Fe, NM. The discussion centered on continuing education (CEU) options, questions about the Trek to Accreditation, volunteer retention and how to better market the PATH Intl. brand and outreach to the community. Plans for the upcoming State Fair Horse Show in September were discussed, and an option for having a horse show for PATH Intl. centers to enable students to demonstrate the skills they have learned was presented.
2017 Region 10 Conference 
SAVE THE DATE! May 5-7, 2017 is the next Region 10 Conference, hosted by Front Range Exceptional Equestrians in beautiful Fort Collins, Colorado! ' FREE' is planning some amazing tours and parties (including a Kentucky Derby party, so get your hats ready!).

Please direct correspondence about this newsletter to PATH Intl. eNews coordinator. No portion of this publication may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, scanned or electronic process without written permission from PATH Intl. PATH Intl. reserves the right to reject, accept and edit submitted material. The PATH Intl. Region Newsletters are intended as an information exchange and an opportunity for communication for members in the field of equine-assisted activities and therapies. The opinions, practices or products presented in PATH Intl. eNews do not necessarily reflect PATH Intl. policy, imply PATH Intl. endorsement, or comply with PATH Intl. standards.

 

Events listed are for information purposes and do not necessarily reflect PATH Intl. policy, imply endorsement or comply with PATH Intl. Standards. They may or may not be eligible for PATH Intl. continuing education units on instructor compliance forms. For questions regarding CEUs, contact Bret Maceyak at the PATH Intl. office. 

 

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