BOARD INFO
Jessica van der Hoek
Jessica grew up in the small Alberta town of Vauxhall and spent much of her childhood as a member of her local horse 4-H club. As a teenager, she volunteered at the Lethbridge Handicapped Riding Association where her love and passion for therapeutic riding was born.
Jessica founded Prairie Sky in 2010 to address a need in the community for equine therapy, with a vision of offering safe and quality programming that leveraged the benefits of working with horses. She is driven by a relentless desire to help individuals tackle their challenges while creating a space where people can feel part of a community and reach their full potential.
Jessica is proud of what Prairie Sky has become and is rewarded by witnessing the progress that riders make and their physical and mental changes as they grow and become more independent.
Jessica graduated from Portage College and works as a Paramedic for Alberta Health Services and was previously the Director of Programming for a Calgary-based Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy program.
Instructor info
Vernon Lundy
Vernon’s life has always had an equine influence. As the youngest of seven children raised on a mixed farm outside of Coronation, Alberta, it’s safe to say the family horses were his first babysitter.
After raising four children of his own, Vernon found himself seeking an opportunity to put his time to purposeful use. He began volunteering at a local farm where he started to witness the power of the human-horse bond.
After years of volunteering, assistant teaching and refining his skills with horsemanship training, Vernon went on to gain his CHA – IRD certification. Vernon now holds dual certification with CHA-IRD as well as PATH Intl.
Vernon’s intuitive ability to know what best serves each client is a talent that cannot be taught. His teaching style yields a remarkable balance of assessing the logistics of one's capacity and knowing when it’s safe to provide a nudge towards something new. His level of awareness, compassion, and empathy for both rider and horse is what sets him apart from other therapeutic riding instructors.
Everyday Vernon is inspired by the smiles and the tangible physical and cognitive improvements his clients make. One of his greatest joys is witnessing the moments where his clients step beyond their realm of comfort to experience a profound step towards growth. Whether it’s a child establishing a deep connection with their horse, someone breathing a little deeper, lifeless hands reaching for the reins, or a spoken command from a non-verbal child, these are the moments that fuel the passion for his work.
Through his teaching, Vernon is humbled to play a part in the bigger picture of each client's story. We all have our challenges and obstacles, and he is honoured to provide a leg up to help his clients on their journey.
Claire Poulter
Claire has been involved with horses since she was a young girl in England, and her love for them only grew after moving to Canada in 2008. She developed a love for showjumping, which led to further knowledge being obtained through dressage and cross-country events. During her time riding, she was asked by multiple other coaches whether she was interested in becoming a coach herself, which began her journey toward becoming an NCCP Certified Competition Coach with Equine Canada.
Claire has a passion for making space for everyone in the sport of equestrian, and making sure everyone has access to the sport. Recognizing the healing power of horses has helped to guide her coaching methods, as welll as creating a safe competitive space to encourage growth in all riders. She loves to see new skills 'click' with riders and encourage skill development and more efficient ways to move forward as a horse and rider team.
Photo Credit: Reverse Eye Photography
Thomas Kubli
Horses have always been a major part of Thomas’ life. He started his riding career in Switzerland in 1971 and has competed in dressage, eventing and combined driving ever since. When he came to Canada in 1984 to obtain a Ph.D. in geology at the University of Calgary, he bought his first horse. Ever since then, horses have
helped him keep sane during his professional career as a geologist. Thomas obtained his coaching certification in 1990 and is a licensed competition coach with Equestrian Canada.
About 20 years ago he started getting into natural horsemanship and has been on a continuous path of learning in the field. He is hoping to be able to pass along the acquired knowledge and skills to our clients in the PTSD program. He is also volunteering his time to work with our horses outside of the regular classes.
Together with the veterinarian and our dedicated volunteers, he is working to ensure that they stay healthy and get appropriate exercise and treatment for their particular needs.