Meet Our Team
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GINGER EWAYS,
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Joining Triple H in 2013, Ginger has over 30 years experience in grant writing and nonprofit executive management. She has a master’s degree and certificates in nonprofit management and fundraising. “It is a privilege to serve people with special needs and to work with the dedicated staff, awesome volunteers, and the amazing therapy horses at Triple H,” Ginger remarked. “One of the best parts of the job is that everyday at Triple H, we celebrate the victories of our clients—some are dramatic, some modest, but all significant. Our clients can reach their utmost potential through the magic of our horses.” Ginger loves all of the Triple H therapy horses, and she absolutely adores Hannah, our amazing Shire, who is “totally magnificent!” |
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KEISHA GONZALES
OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Keisha began working at Triple H in 2011 as the volunteer coordinator, and since then she as donned many hats. She is a PATH certified riding instructor and is PATH certified in ESMHL. Her corporate background as an executive at Target and her degree in criminal justice equipped her with many skills that she uses to perform several important jobs at Triple H. She has been riding horses since she was a baby and competed in multiple all around events as a child and teen. Troubled youth and Veterans have a special place in her heart. Her favorite therapy horse is Voodoo, her beautiful buckskin mare. |
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KYLA NELSON,
CERTIFIED THERAPUTIC RIDING INSTRUCTOR Kyla has been a member of the Triple H staff since 2005. She is a certified PATH Instructor and a certified PATH Equine Specialist in Mental Health & Learning. She has been riding, training horses, and eventing for 23 years. Kyla is adept at teaching clients with a wide variety of physical and mental challenges. “I am very easy going and energetic,” Kyla observed, “and I do well working under pressure. I am also very flexible and can change my lesson plan at a drop of a hat if required to meet the needs of clients.” Kyla loves working with Bentley, an Appendix. |
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NADINE JOY,
CERTIFIED THERAPUTIC RIDING INSTRUCTOR Nadine is a certified PATH Instructor, and her many accomplishments as an equestrian include long distance riding. She has a bachelor’s degree in creative arts therapies and 36 credit hours towards a Masters degree in clinical psychology. Her 25+ years of work in the foster care field have given her experience working with the varied populations served by Triple H. Nadine commented, “My positive outlook on life helps me to develop success-based goals in my lesson plans. I look for the little success in each student to encourage the riders to achieve the bigger goals.” Rusty is Nadine’s favorite horse. Rusty, a gorgeous Clydesdale, was the only horse who stuck her neck out of her stall to greet Nadine when her first arrived. They’ve been fast friends ever since. Rusty knew that Nadine needed another big-hearted friend. |
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DEBE JACKSON,
CERTIFIED THERAPUTIC RIDING INSTRUCTOR Debe grew up in Houston and developed a love of horses during her high school years. She graduated from West Point with a degree in Engineering. She served in both the active U.S. Army and the National Guard for eight years as an engineer officer. In her professional life, she worked in various manufacturing facilities with roles ranging from project engineer to operations supervisor. When life finally brought her home to Texas, she discovered Triple H Equitherapy. She has Volunteered as a horse handler for over 2 1/2 years. Her great joy is watching the progressions of the students and the smiles on their faces when they ride. The opportunity to become a certified instructor is a dream come true. |
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ALYCIA GILES,
CERTIFIED THERAPUTIC RIDING INSTRUCTOR Alycia began volunteering with classes for Veterans at Triple H in 2016, and since then has worked with other groups of clients. She was honored as Volunteer of the Year in 2018. "I enjoy seeing the growth and improvement in the people who come to Triple H," she notes. She says that she is "excited to be a part of the Triple H team, working with amazing people and equally amazing horses." |
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BEN KATLEMAN,
CERTIFIED THERAPUTIC RIDING INSTRUCTOR IN TRAINING Ben joined the Army right after High School and served as a scout for six years. He started at Triple H as a client in the Horse Power for Heroes program in early 2019, then became a dedicated volunteer. Ben is now working towards completing his training to become a credited therapeutic riding instructor. |
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HEIKE WESTOVER,
GROUND INSTRUCTOR Heike has worked at Triple H as a Ground Instructor since 1999. She is an integral part of the Hooves, Hearts & Heroes program team, teaching the ground lesson part of each lesson to special needs students from area schools. Heike has a master’s degree in social work and counseling and extensive experience working with adults and children with mental challenges. “I love working with children and am very excited about the different ways they learn,” Heike noted. Her enthusiasm and compassion help her face the various challenges that come with teaching special needs children. Here she poses with Flash, a registered Pony of America (POA). |
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LANCE YOUELL,
BARN ASSISTANT Lance was born and raised in Oklahoma but got to Texas as soon as he could! Lance started with Triple H as a volunteer in 2017 with very little horse experience but a VERY strong work ethic. He was hired on as a full-time barn assistant in 2019 and has since become quite a good horseman. Lance is best known for his loud personality and contagious happiness. He loves ALL the horses in the barn as well as those in retirement. |
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TERRY HARPER,
BARN ASSISTANT Terri began her love of Triple H and her love of horses recently, in 2016 as a matter of fact. She started as a volunteer with no knowledge of horses and no riding experience. But she eagerly absorbed much horse knowledge shared with her by staff as well as through hands-on learning. Volunteering many hours a week, including volunteering for late night feedings, enabled her to develop a love of horses and trusting and affectionate relationships with each member of the Triple H Healing Herd. When Terri started at Triple H, she didn’t know how to ride, but she quickly learned and recently was promoted to intermediate rider. |
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JACEY LORIMER
BARN ASSISTANT Jacey has been interested in horses since she was little and began taking lessons when she was 8 years old. When she turned 16, she started teaching girl scouts to ride every summer at Camp La Jita from 2017-2021. She began volunteering at Triple H as a freshman in high school in 2016, and become a staff member as a freshman in college in 2020. Jacey graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Agriculture, Animal Science in 2022 from Texas A&M University-Kingsville. Currently, she is working on her Master's in Animal Science at TAMUK. Her favorite horse is Jackson, initially falling in love with his gorgeous eyes then his awesome and hilarious personality. |
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BECKY WEAVER,
JANITOR Becky has worked as Triple H’s Janitor since 2009. She keeps the bunkhouse environment clean and orderly. Like all Triple H staff, Becky loves our horses, especially our sweet Saddlebred, Saturn. Becky’s ability to do “a little of this and a little of that” includes marching in parades to publicize Triple H programs. |
Meet Our Contract Team
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JEANNETTE D. TAPPE, Ph.D., NCC, LPC,
PSYCHOTHERAPIST AND CLINICAL DIRECTOR Jeannette is a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor (LPC-S) #65396 in the state of Texas and a National Certified Counselor (NCC) #254488 by the National Board Certified Counselors, Inc. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Texas at San Antonio. She holds a Masters of Arts in Mental Health Counseling and a Ph.D. in Counselor Education and Supervision from St. Mary's University. She is a certified Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning by the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International and has been providing psychotherapy, and equine-assisted psychotherapy to Veterans, couples, families, adults, adolescents, children, and at-risk youth since 2007. |
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THERESA THOMASON, LPC
PSYCHOTHERAPIST Theresa is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) # 81402 in the state of Texas. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Theology and a Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling from Liberty University. She has worked with Triple H since 2017 and has provided psychotherapy and equine facilitated psychotherapy to adults, adolescents, and children at-risk. She began as a volunteer with little knowledge of horses and quickly grew to love working with them as their “therapy assistant”. She is a certified Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning by the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International and has been providing psychotherapy and equine-assisted psychotherapy to Veterans, adults, adolescents, children and at-risk youth since 2018. |
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OLIVIA TATE, LPC-A
PSYCHOTHERAPIST Olivia is a Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPC-A, # 92011) in the state of Texas and a National Certified Counselor (NCC, #1728832). She earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Texas State University and a Master of Science degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She has been providing psychotherapy and equine facilitated psychotherapy to veterans, adults, geriatric adults, and adolescents since 2022. |
