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MEET THE TEAM

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Hometown: Houston, TX

Favorite Food: Cheese Enchiladas

The Movie I'll Never Say No To Watching: The Princess Bride

Irrational Fear: Restaurant Buzzers

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Lara Beckham

PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor, CTRI

Lara@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Georgetown, TX

Favorite Food: Many favorites, but my daily go-to favorite food/snack is popcorn (I love many different varities but especially love Sour Patch Kids with popcorn).

The movie I'll never say no to: The Princess Bride

Three unusual things that make me happy:

   1. Being a Texan and loving chili with beans

   2. Going to the dentist (love having clean teeth)

   3. Pulling weeds out by the roots in my yard is gratifying.

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Emily Bedow

Equine Coordinator

Emily@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Allen, TX

Favorite Food: Tacos

Three unusual things that make me happy:

   1. Doing laundry (because of the smell of detergent)

   2. The extra fries at the bottom of the bag

   3. Campfire/grill smell

I have an insatiable love for: trying new restaurants.

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Anthony Busacca

Therapeutic Riding Education Coordinator

PATH Master Level Riding Instructor, CTRI and ESMHL

Anthony@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Arlington, Virginia

Favorite Food: Peach Pie

Three unusual things that make me happy:

   1. Visiting obscure historical sites and museums

   2. Emptying trash cans

   3. Drinking beer with my beagle. 

As a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to be a cocktail lounge singer.

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Darlene Cary

Therapeutic Riding Program Manager

PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor, CTRI

CHA Instructor of Riders with Disabilities, Level 3

Darlene@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Syracuse, New York

An item on my bucket list:

Ride a Thoroughbred around a race track at full speed. The speed….the wind in my face, and the only sound you hear are the hooves pounding the ground.

The movie I’ll never say no to watching: Gladiator! (Something about this movie makes me feel alive inside.)

If you could add one fictional character to your family, who would it be? It wouldn’t hurt if Iron Man was my brother….he’s funny, smart and can help if we have an alien invasion…what’s not to love?

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Clyde

Ranch Cat

Sponsored By: The Village Vet

Hometown: Magnolia, TX

Favorite Pastime: Cuddles from the kiddos!

Known for: Having zero boundaries

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Justine Daniel

Mental Health Program Manager

PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor, 
CTRI & ESMHL

Natural Lifemanship, NLC-EP

Justine@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Cleveland, OH

Favorite Food: All things breakfast

Three unusual things that make me happy:

  1. Sleeping in a tent

  2. Days that I have no reason to check the time

  3. Black coffee

An item on my bucket list: Sky Diving in New Zealand

Erin

Erin Derkowski
M.ED, LPC

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Jessica

Jessica Gieser

PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor,
CTRI, METSA Certified

Jessica@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Ramona, California  

Favorite Food: Mac and cheese 

Where do you fall in the birth order/how many siblings do you have?  Fourth of Eight 

Three unusual things that make me happy:

   1. Boy band music

   2. The smell of leather

   3. Parking spots next to the cart return

An item on my bucket list:

See the Chincoteague ponies swim from Assateague Island.   

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Harry Potter

Ranch Cat

Sponsored By: The Village Vet

Hometown: Magnolia, TX

Nickname: Harry

Loves: Chasing birds

Favorite Pastime: Long naps

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Hometown: Highlands Ranch, CO 

Three unusual things that make me happy: 

   1. Finding the perfect emoji/Bitmoji for the occasion

   2. Trip planning to a new destination

   3. New episodes of My Favorite Murder podcast

I have an insatiable love for: The Great British Baking Show 

If you could add one fictional character to your family, who would it be?: 100% - David Rose from Schitt’s Creek 

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Melissa Jurik

Vice President of Development

Melissa@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Alamogordo, NM

Three unusual things that make me happy: 

   1. My daily family Wordle group chat

   2. Real Housewives of Beverly Hills

   3. Doing escape rooms with my family

I have an insatiable love for: Planning Trips

If you could add one fictional character to your family, who would it be? Cousin Greg

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Branden Kline

Equine Ranch Hand

Hometown: Jefferson Station, NY

Favorite Food: White pizza with bacon, onions, and extra cheese

Three unusual things that make me happy:

   1. My Little Pony

   2. Soft Blankets

   3. Plush Toys

Unusual Skill: Synchronizing the right music with video

Mike

Hometown: Houston

Favorite Food: BBQ

Where Do You Fall In The Birth Order/How Many 

siblings do you have?: I’m the third child, the youngest

Three unusual things that make me happy:

   1. Animals

   2. Being in nature

   3. Fantasy video games

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Virgil Maier

Senior Ranch Hand

Virgil@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Long Lake, SD

Favorite Food: My Mom's homemade noodle soup

Birth Order: Oldest of 3 siblings

If I had a boat, I'd name it: Escape - Girl Dad

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Michelle Monaco

Grants and Development Coordinator

Michelle@inspirationranch.org

Hometown:  Arlington, TX

If I could pick a superpower it would be: The ability to talk 
    to animals!

Three unusual things that make me happy: 

    1. Leaving one leg out when under a blanket

    2. Drinking pickle juice from the jar

    3. Seeing perfectly shaped spider webs

If you could add one fictional character to your family, who would it be? The Genie from Aladdin

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Cole Moxley

Property & Compliance Manager

Cole@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Crystal Lake, IL

If I could pick a superpower it would be: Moving things with my mind, because getting out of bed to turn off the lights is the worst.

As a kid, I wanted to be: A paleontologist 

If I had a boat, I’d name it: The Kales

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Alicia Penny

Volunteer Coordinator

Alicia@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Cypress

If I could pick a superpower it would be: Since I already have Mom superpowers, I would want healing powers to be able to save lives.  

As a kid, I wanted to be: A cowgirl

Birth Order: I’m the absolute favorite and the Middle Child of 2 sisters
Movie I'll never say no to: The Cable Guy

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Noel Plutto

PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor, CTRI Noel@inspirationranch.org

Hometown: Bloomsburg, PA

Three unusual things that make me happy:

   1. Brushing my dogs' teeth

   2. Dragonfly landing on me

   3. Mud between my toes

Movie I'll never say no to: Pitch Perfect

Favorite Food: Yellow Curry from Ploy Thai

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Lily

Ranch Cat

Sponsored by: The Village Vet

Hometown: The Woodlands, TX

Favorite Food: Catnip

Interesting Fact: Despite being a full-time resident of Inspiration Ranch, Lily has yet to work one billable hour.

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Keith O'Connor

M.A., CCC-SLP

Speech Pathologist

Info@InspirationRanch.org

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Mallory Scott

Pets: Two dogs (Yankee Poodle and Maple Syrup), about a dozen chickens and five barn cats.

Birth Order: I’m number 4 out of 5 kids

What I Love about the Ranch: I love working with the horses and riders and seeing how the riders find peace with the horses.

Three things that make me happy:

    1.  Music

    2. Animals

    3. When I can easily write a college paper that’s due                  without any problems

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