Founded in 2010, Hope Reins is Kim’s heartfelt response to her childhood  marked by abuse and trauma. Seeking love amid familial  alcoholism, Kim found solace in her loyal horse, Country, sparking her  journey of hope and healing. Now, at the 38-acre Hope Reins ranch  in Raleigh, North Carolina, Kim’s team has empowered more than 3,000  children to discover hope and healing alongside 18 rescued horses, with  all services provided free of charge.    The ranch gained national attention in 2018 when volunteer Jennifer  Bleakley penned the best-selling book “Joey,” narrating Hope Reins’  origins and the transformative role played by its blind Appaloosa horse  in helping children heal.

 Kim has been featured in various national publications including Focus  on the Family, and has been a guest on podcasts such as Nothing is  Wasted, Treasured Ministries, and Grace Enough. She recently appeared  on PBS’ Side by Side with Dr. Nido Qubein. In 2020, she received the  Triangle Business Journal’s Women in Business Award recognizing her  as a dynamic leader in business and community service. Kim lives in  Raleigh with her husband Michael, two kids, Chance and Isabel, and  three dogs.

 

CONNECT WITH KIM   [email protected]  Home - Hope Reins

After concluding a fulfilling 30-year career in nursing in 2006, she and her husband, Steve, embarked on an adventurous journey beyond the borders of the USA, landing in the picturesque landscapes of Costa Rica. There, they undertook a remarkable transformation of a 26-acre dairy farm, which eventually blossomed into a beloved retreat center nestled at the foothills of the majestic Arenal Volcano. 

In 2020, they passed on the stewardship of the retreat center to new owners and have settled back in Virginia, where she offers private equine-supported retreats and coaching at home and abroad.  

 She's facilitated transformative retreats since 2007 in Denmark, Costa Rica, the USA, Chile, Portugal, and Canada, continually striving to impart wisdom and inspire positive change while forging meaningful connections with hundreds of individuals and nurturing profound bonds with soulful horses.

Her passion for teaching has driven her to share insights and experiences at numerous conferences, wearing the hats of both a registered nurse and an equine practitioner. She has co-instructed the Eponaquest apprenticeship program across various corners of the world, including New Zealand, Australia, the USA, and Costa Rica.   

Her book, Pony's Girl Parables, follows the journey of a teenage girl who seeks to understand her spiritual self. When Girl turns thirteen, she gets a pony and begins to feel her connection to everything. Over the course of Girl’s teenage years, she travels with Pony through the In-Between to the magical place called the Merkabah World. It’s in this vibrant, colorful world that different spiritual guides teach her valuable lessons that enable her to become the best version of herself.

Transformational Coaching - Eponicity

Sue has 40 years of equestrian experience in show jumping and eventing and has specialized in natural horsemanship for the past 25 years, successfully competing in many natural horsemanship shows. Currently, Sue works with horses and clients on the Gold Coast, Australia, and her vision is to see people trained to deliver the well-known and highly regarded Horses Helping Humans program across Australia and New Zealand.  Sue lives by her motto; “There should never be any intimidation or fear in communication; there should only be mutual respect and trust”. Horses Helping Humans™ has received multiple community and business awards in conjunction with immense international media coverage. 

Sue specializes in personality profiling and body language analysis. Her four horses represent a modern adaption of The Four Temperaments theoretical framework, and her unique work demonstrates how choleric, melancholy, sanguine, and phlegmatic personality types have their own conditioned responses when under pressure. ‘Horse whispering’ meets ‘people whispering’ within her innovative equine-assisted life coaching program that integrates interpersonal communication skills, body language, emotional intelligence, and personality types. Sue says she is “simply making each personality conscious of the body language that is hindering their communication”. 

Sue’s book “Horses Who Heal” tells the story of her life and how Sue found solace and companionship with her horses. After a brush with cancer in her late thirties, the family opted for a tree change. As a result, she was able to fulfill a long-held dream - to work with horses every day. Her horse training and compassion for others quickly turned into a business, Horses Helping Humans™ – giving people a chance to learn from these intelligent, soulful creatures. Sue’s equine team is inspiring others on their own journey of healing, helping thousands of people – from juvenile offenders to company CEOs – discover the power of communication, using more than just words.   

www.horseshelpinghumansaustralia.com www.facebook.com/HorsesHelpingHumans.AU

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrIhH4H37Ag_B5jB1QqqpXQ

Horses Who Heal: Spence, Sue: 9780648966005: Amazon.com: Books

 

*Horses Helping Humans Australia is not affiliated with the Horses Helping Humans Podcast

Sandy Sharkey is a wild horse advocate, photographer, writer, guest speaker and retreat host. The first time she saw wild horses, it changed her life. The sight of these free spirits galloping across a mountain vista became an exchange of energy, unlike anything she had ever felt. Sandy became immersed in the world of wild horses, observing their close family bonds, beauty and free spirit. She also uncovered an ugly truth: wild horses are under siege, being rounded up and removed from their wilderness homes, families separated and many being sent to the slaughter pipeline. In 2018, Sandy created the 'Find Wild Horses, Find Yourself' campaign. She set out to encourage people to experience wild horses for themselves; to drink in the energy, the freedom, and the inner spirit of these animals- and to realize the profound positive effect that wild horses can have in our hearts and souls. Not only would these connections prove beneficial to us as humans, but being in the presence of wild horses would encourage people to add their voices for wild horse protection. Sandy has documented and experienced wild horses throughout North America, New Zealand, Mongolia, Patagonia and Portugal. She is also a guide for the wild horses of Sable Island. In recent years, Sandy has partnered with equine facilitated coach Debbie Draves Legg to host 'Find Wild Horses, Find Yourself' retreats in Alberta, Patagonia and Portugal, created to experience the healing powers of horses, both wild and domestic. 2024 will be filled with opportunities to join Sandy on wild Sable Island, and at retreats in Alberta and Patagonia. Her wild horse prints adorn walls in homes, offices and workplaces around the world.    To connect, please email [email protected], and check out her website www.sandysharkey.com   On FB: https://www.facebook.com/SandySharkeyPhotography IG: https://www.instagram.com/sandysharkeyphotography/   My hashtag:  #ButImJustOnePersonSaid300MillionPeople    ~ created to encourage people to use the power of their individual voice to save wild horses!   Watch Wild Beauty Mustang Spirit of the West online – Prime Video

Psychologist, mentor, educator, and speaker. With over 35 years of professional experience, Paul T. Haefner, Ph.D. focuses his energy these days serving the equestrian community. In 1998 he founded Riding Far, LLC to provide a broad range of sport and performance psychology services for riders. He is passionate about learning and integrating knowledge and skills from a wide range of perspectives, academic disciplines, and worlds of human experience. In addition to 30+ years of experience as a teacher and psychotherapist, Dr. Haefner is a certified Clinical Hypnotherapist and a Neurolinguistic Programming Master practitioner. He has worked extensively with equestrians of all  ages and disciplines and finds great joy in helping people create meaningful change in their lives and in their riding. 

In 2018 Dr, Haefner joined forces with his son and talented horse trainer, Justin Haefner. This exciting new partnership at Riding Far, LLC has expanded our offerings to include help for the horse as well as the human. Our synergistic focus on horse and rider together, and all the rich complexity of that system, has opened the door for transforming the experience of horses and riders in ways we never could when working separately. In addition to individual consultation, Dr, Haefner regularly presents seminars and workshops focused on overcoming obstacles in human-horse relationships and increasing heartfelt enjoyment of our life with horses.

Transformational Experiences for Equestrians and Horses - Riding Far LLC

 

Mena Canonico is the Founder of Liberty Lane Retreats, located just north of Toronto, Canada. Mena left a successful 16-year corporate career in 2006 to pursue her purpose and create more meaning in her life. Horses galloped back into her life in 2009, and while she instantly knew how powerful it would be to incorporate them into her business (then called DARE TO BE REAL Coaching & Consulting), she was terrified of them because of a traumatic experience she had as a teen. She made it her mission to overcome her fear, and by 2015, she moved from a 1 bedroom apartment to a 30-acre horse property and had 7 horses join her in less than a week.

Mena now joins forces with the Freedom Herd - her Dream team of former rescue horses - to offer game-changing retreats and experiences for women who are feeling stuck, frustrated or trapped, yet silently yearn to live more authentically and create an impact in the world. Alongside her horses, Mena assists clients with overcoming fear, self-doubt, and unresolved trauma so they can make dramatic changes in their lives, experience more peace of mind, and ultimately align with their soul’s calling - in much less time than it took her.

 https://www.libertylaneretreats.com

Lidia Kuleshnyk is a Renaissance Woman and founder of AponaHealing.com, she brings together 30 years of passion, expertise, and wisdom in four pathways, for every stage of personal development, to help you live a Centered, Connected and Conscious™ Life.

Her Apona Healing Ranch offers Equine-Assisted Therapy and Equine Healing Retreats to help you return to wholeness through heart-centered, transformational relationships with horses.  Retreats are designed for client’s unique goals and needs, including private, group and corporate retreats.

Through her own incredible journey, starting at the age of 10, She developed a deep relationship with horses, animals and nature. This connection helped her heal her chronic health conditions, master her inner power, and reclaim her sovereignty.

She loves sharing her passion, vision and mission as a Thought Leader, 3 X Best Selling Author, Columnist with Expert Profile Magazine and Executive Contributor to Brainz Magazine.

Honoured to be a recipient of the Global Super Minds Award by Expert Profile Magazine, Global Women Leaders Award by Passion Vista Magazine and being featured in Who’s Who Of The World Industries by Unified Brainz Group.

 

 

www.AponaHealing.com

Dr. Giselle Faubel is a world-renowned psychologist with a passion for equine-assisted therapy and coaching. After graduating from Harvard, she began her career as a pediatric neuropsychologist and has since dedicated her life to applying the powerful relationship between humans and horses in therapeutic and corporate settings. She is the founder of Equulibrium, an organization that provides equine-supported therapy and executive coaching and has transformed the lives of countless individuals while garnering international recognition. Her work with veterans has been featured by National Geographic and she has led workshops around the world focused on treating autism, trauma, substance abuse, and other mental health conditions. Dr. Faubel's innovative work has left a lasting mark on the world of psychology and horse-human connections. Dr. Faubel is eager to share her wealth of knowledge and experience with the world in her upcoming book: “Horses Transforming Lives: From Innocence to Wisdom.” It aims to enlighten readers about the profound healing potential of equine therapy and showcase how these majestic beings can be powerful catalysts for personal growth and transformation.

For more information on upcoming retreats please visit:  Home (equulibrium.com) 

This episode is a recording of the way I teach the body scan.  This technique is taught and utilized in many of my workshops AND with clients working with their horses.  The body scan is designed to help us attune to our sensing body, enabling us to better "hear" the messages we are receiving through our body.  The secret is to begin to dialogue and hear what's being communicated at a whisper, or the subtlest emotion, enhancing our decision-making.  Really, it's about going straight to "the horse's mouth" as it were! 

Please feel free to use this recording in your daily practice and share with me how it's working for you. 

Cathy

Kate Nicoll, LCSW, RPT, is the founder and CEO of Soul Friends, Inc: Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of CT.  Kate grew up with a deep love and gratitude for her animal friends and how they helped her in times of childhood trauma. A graduate of Elms College and Smith College, Kate has worked in a variety of settings, including medical and psychiatric in-patient hospitals, private practices serving geriatric and adolescent clients, home care agencies and hospice.  As a young widowed woman with two children, Kate ran a grief program with the COVE for families and a young widows group.  At the age of 37, Kate came home from work as a social worker and then overnight became partially paralyzed from the neck down from a virus, leaving her with a devastating disability that still impacts her today.  Over several months, Kate noticed her dog responding to her physical and emotional pain - and this led to her taking a year-long certificate in Animal Assisted Therapy and led to the founding of Soul Friends, Inc.  In the past 20 years, Kate has presented at national and international conferences on the healing benefits of animals for children and families with trauma and loss.  Her equine-assisted psychotherapy curriculum, Horses Inspire, was the first in the country to provide a parent-relationship program for veteran and first responder families with the healing benefits of horses.  She is EAGALA certified, Natural Lifemanship, International Assisted Play Therapy, and Arenas for Change trained, as well as in equine EMDR.  Her first horse relationship with Easter Dawn, and now with Sweetie and Joey drive her passion in the field.

 

Soul Friends – Animal Assisted Therapy Programs of Connecticut – Healing the hearts of children one wagging tail at a time… (soul-friends.org)