May 15, 2006
May 15, 2006
WELCOME TO HOOFBEATS AND HEARTBEATS
Hoofbeats and Heartbeats is the new name of our newsletter. Berni Carter wins an Opening Gaits t-shirt for submitting the name. The Board voted at the last meeting and this name won the contest.
At the April Annual General Meeting the previous Board members were re-elected and we now have two new members. The Opening Gaits Board now has seven members and here they are:
Don Chalmers – Chairman for the second year. Don was born and raised in Millarville to a ranching family. He started riding at the age of five. His first horse was called Socks and they grew up together teaching each other about life. Don joined the rodeo circuit at a young age and it earned him a scholarship to the University of Wyoming where he graduated with a degree in education. He is now on many rodeo and cattle committees. Don is pleased to be associated with Opening Gaits as Chairman and Fund Raising Coordinator for the annual Cowboy Trail Rodeo for Charities.
Linda Gossen –is a new member although she has been on the Board in the past. She has the new position of Assistant Chairwoman. She also is going to be in charge of Special Events which will include the Volunteer Appreciation Night, etc. Linda has a Bachelor of Community Rehabilitation and is involved with many associations. She works with the Autism Association and the North Haven Sports Council. She has three children riding in the program.
Darrin Matwe – is continuing as Treasurer. Darren is a lawyer in general practice and real estate. He has been involved with Opening Gaits for the last five years and has a daughter who rides. He has two other children and is active with his son in Cubs and coaches softball.
Our Secretary is now Marin Irwin who is a new Board member. Marina is a Land Management Planning Forester with Sustainable Resources Development with Alberta Forestry. She was born and raised in Ontario and had the opportunity of working in the Czech Republic and Ireland. Her grandparents raised pintos and paint horses. She has been a camp councilor, Sunday school teacher and Brownie leader. She moved to Calgary in 2003 and in 2004 became part of Opening Gaits and is looking forward to helping on the Board.
Howard Nelson – has a daughter in the program and has been on the Board since last fall. He is taking over as Director of Marketing. He is working on the Adopt-A-Horse program and will be looking after the Shopping portion of our website when it is ready.
He is a Professional Engineer who works in the oil and gas industry. Howard’s hobbies include biking, hiking, woodworking and skiing.
Warren Wilson - is our Volunteer Coordinator and has been on the Board since last fall. He is busy learning the ropes from Yvonne. He has volunteered with the kids now for four years. He was born in Calgary and has a passion for the outdoors, horses and loves kids although he has none of his own yet. Warren has worked in the tropical plant industry for 18 years and his enjoys working in his yard and it shows.
Jane Thorburn – is our outgoing Secretary and has become very involved with fund raising events and is now Fund Raising Coordinator for events other than the Charity Rodeo. She has been a volunteer with the program for four years now. Her family came to Calgary when she was young and she learned to ride and ski right away. Her family has been involved in many facets of the horse world going back to her grandmother, who taught riding at the University of Oklahoma. Her family is still involved with horses and her grandsons are continuing the tradition. Jane has worked for many years in the oil and gas business in the accounting field. She enjoys photography and has taken many pictures of the Opening Gaits crew.
Now our instructors without whom the program could not function:
Donna Davey – wears many hats. She is the Wednesday instructor/planner/safety inspector/coach/team leader and treat lady for the horses. She joined Opening Gaits five years ago where she was made to feel very welcome. She was amazed at the interaction between the students and horses. She successfully became a NARHA instructor in June 2004. To quote Donna, “my experience with Opening Gaits has been eventful, fulfilling, stressful, educational and fun. I would not trade it for anything as I enjoy it very much.â€
Tori Kaiser – is our Thursday instructor and we would like to congratulate her and her husband Matt on the birth of their daughter Vanessa Jane Kaiser who was born May 5, 2006. She was 8 pounds, 11 oz and 20 ¾ inches long. This brave lady will be coming back to teach in September with babe in hand. Tori learned to ride when she was young and was involved with Pony Club and fell in love with three phase event riding. She did her Honors Thesis on therapeutic riding and has lots of experience in the field.
Rick Maidman – is our Saturday instructor but he also pitch-hits when someone can’t make class. He has been involved with Opening Gaits for five years and he is our resident character. Rick believes that horses have their own magic and the kids love him. He is always coming up with ways to make things more interesting. He now has his class barrel racing and pole bending. Rick’s goal as an instructor is to see each rider be as independent as possible in a fun but safe environment. Rick is really into trail riding and he even met his wife while trail riding with friends. He is now involved in endurance trail riding. This is his most current horse, Princess Starbeam. Rick’s commitment to Opening Gaits is wonderful, as like everyone else he is very busy working, learning to improve his riding, attending clinics for his certification and teaching Opening Gaits classes.
And last but not least our wonderful Yvonne Anderson who is the glue that binds us together and keeps us going. Yvonne started with Opening Gaits in 2001 with her son who rides. The horse he rides is his treasure and he has become a very independent rider. Yvonne is now our administrator and she enjoys the friendships of the parents, riders and volunteers. Her greatest joy is seeing the smiles and hearing the laughter of the riders and volunteers as they move around the arena. We also can’t forget her love of the snacks that the parents so kindly supply for the classes.
NEW CLASS
We are running a trial spring session for the Wednesday morning class. The riders requested an extension and it seems to be working well. We hope to expand the evening classes in the following year.
STAMPEDE BASH
There has been a change in the date of the Stampede Bash. It will be June 24, 2006 which is a Saturday.
