Striving for Greatness

Ruthann Steere has three big passions in life: horses, people, Jesus.

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Having loved and worked with horses from a young age, it has always been her desire to encourage others to enjoy them as well. With over fifteen years of experience working with kids and adults; from “at-risk”, to developmentally disabled, to corporate, and families in a variety of areas and programs, Ruthann's broad range of experience makes her a natural teacher. She has a huge desire to see children and people of all ages grow and learn and become all that God has called them to be.

Ruthann's BA is in Equine Management and Recreation (Experiential Education). She uses horses and outdoor recreation as a tool to interact and communicate with kids and adults alike. Because hoof care is of critical importance to the well-being of a horse, she recently pursued and graduated from the Troy Price Horseshoeing School, IN.

Ruthann is a Professional Practitioner ACCT general level 2, working on a variety of different challenge courses, including outdoor guide training in rock climbing, canoeing, caving, group and individual hiking trips.

Medical experience consists of CPR First Aid infant-adult, AED, Lifeguard, Wilderness First Responder.

Clare has had a love for horses since she was a little girl. She started riding and volunteering at horse barns when she was 13 years old. Clare is the fourth child of seven and loves to help teach her younger siblings and other children, especially when it comes to anything horse related. Her love for Christ and passion for sharing His love with others is most important to her and she is looking forward teaching and working with children.  Running and reading are two of her favorite hobbies when she is not at the horse barn.

Amy has always had a big heart for animals and children. Horses have always been in her life through friends and neighbors. She has been riding for fun, cleaning stalls, feeding, and groom horses since she was 11. Just recently she has started to really learn proper riding techniques and training of horses. 

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Amy has an BA in Elementary Education and has been working with children since she was 12. She has volunteered in church programs, had multiple babysitting jobs, taught in a daycare preschool, taught in an elementary school, and substitute taught. Amy also started going to school for a vet tech degree but when life got to crazy she had to put that aside.

Amy is a wife and a mother of two. She is so excited that she can not only share her love of animals with her own two children but with others as well now through the different programs at the barn. 

Maddy has always had a passion for animals and started consistently riding horses in high school. She has worked with horses in many settings including a large competition barn, a wrangler at a summer camp, and assisting with equine therapy.

Maddy believes horses can be used as a tool to bring others to Christ. Many aspects of horses can be used as a metaphor for our relationship with Christ. She loves showing these similarities through educating about horse behavior and training.

Maddy currently attends Hope College and is working towards a degree in Nursing with a minor in Psychology. When she isn’t working with horses, she can be found studying in coffee shops.

Rylee has had an interest in, and passion for horses since a young age. She knew she found her niche when she started volunteering at Renew TRC when she was a student at Hope College.  Since then she has made it a priority to find a stable wherever she finds herself living ....from Michigan, to Colorado and to Montana. 

Rylee has her BA in Elementary Education with an emphasis on early childhood education from Hope College. She has been working with children since she started babysitting at age 13.  She enjoys volunteering in her church children's ministry, has taught in a Montessori preschool, a Christian elementary school, and is currently working with autistic children at Hope DIscovery in Zeeland. 

Combining her love of horses and of youth makes her position at AJ's Farm the perfect match!

Mallory has always been interested in horses but only started riding at the age of 13. She quickly began volunteering thereafter, spending as much time as she could with horses.

She enjoys learning about their ways of communication, especially in comparison to the ways people do. She loves to chase the adrenaline rushes that jumping horses provides her with, as well as the bonds that can be built. Mallory believes that through working with horses, people can also become better communicators with each other and hopes for others to find the same spark that she has with these animals. 

In her free time, she enjoys skiing, playing soccer, hiking, and photography. 

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Hi! I’m Briella M. I have a huge passion for horses and had many simple pony rides until my first riding lesson at 9 years old. I was trained in the Hunter/Jumper aspect and participated in many competitions. I’ve gotten to ride many different kinds of horses with my IEA experience and loved each one. I also enjoy writing simple and pure things such as poetry and children’s stories. I spend some of my weekends singing at church as well. I have a love for Jesus, my family and friends, animals in general but especially my sweet dog, Maylee.

Jenn V. - Riding Lessons, Horse Training Lessons

Kris L. - Riding Lessons

Madi E. - Vaulting, Riding Lessons