Our Team NEW

Erica de Flamand-Shugg

Founder and Executive Director, Equuvation
BFA Fine Arts in Design – University of Connecticut
PATH Intl. Certified Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning [ESMHL]
PATH Intl. Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor [CTRI]
Trauma Focused EAP / Natural Lifemanship and RhythmicRiding Certified
Stable Moments Certified
Horse Boy Method Certified
CPR, First Aid and AED Certified
Mental Health First Aid Certified
Project Learning Tree Certified
 

Born and raised on the shoreline of Connecticut, Erica grew up with an innate love of nature and animals. Childhood freedom often found her exploring the Timberlands near her home, creating original “paintings” from found mud, and swinging off a mystical bent dogwood that she knew as the “elbow tree”. There was never a time in her life without family dogs, and her mother's passion for horses ignited her own childhood love. From learning how to trot on a mischievous pony named Hobbit, to developing a {second} career within the industry, horses have never escaped her daily life.

A first generation American from Irish and Danish-born parents, Erica was raised in a culture of hygge; with a strong appreciation for simplicity, the outdoors and tea time. Multiple generations within her family earned a living by designing, creating or cultivating beautifully-crafted things; a heritage that likely led her to pursue a fine art direction in college. Perhaps more importantly, they set a strong example within their communities of giving back and serving others.

Erica explored a traditional equestrian path as a junior rider in hunters, jumpers, dressage, eventing and later, vaulting. She spent summers as a camp counselor for a youth riding program, and was the captain of her local Eventing Team through high school. Her first exposure to equine-assisted therapies was a result of searching for sophomore service hours at age 15, when she assisted with a program that paired at-risk youth from a juvenile detention center, with horses. Working alongside a professor from YALE who was using her own personal horses to impact the lives of these young men and women, Erica was inspired by the transformation she saw through this horse-human connection.

Upon graduation from UConn, her professional life took her in the direction of working a Designer and Creative Director in industries such as adventure travel, human resources, finance and signature event planning. In conjunction, she operated as a freelance designer and photographer, later establishing her own studio, which routinely offered reduced fee or pro-bono creative services to nonprofit organizations.

As Erica continued to volunteer in equine therapy programs, she became certified as a PATH Intl. Therapeutic Riding Instructor and an Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning. Additional opportunities led her to explore the modalities of HorseBoy Method, Natural Lifemanship and RhythmicRiding. Over the years, Erica has worked with children, teens and adults who have special needs; individuals experiencing symptoms of anxiety, depression, PTSD, ADHD, and Autism; and those whose lives have been impacted by trauma or chronic illness. Through it all, she has held onto a special interest in working with the at-risk youth population, which is who inspired her own journey in the field back in high school.

A strong desire to collaborate with others presented an opportunity to launch a nonprofit that focused on advancing and supporting the equine-assisted therapy industry. Now, Erica's combined passions in both design and equine-therapy has offered her the experience to launch and cultivate Equuvation into an innovative “Think Tank” for the equine-assisted activities industry; as well as to create impactful therapeutic programs, connecting people to horses for the sake of education, wellness and healing.

When she's not at the barn, Erica spends time with Bryan, her better half, and their Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy, Mesa.

Tracy Byrnes

Board of Directors, Equuvation
Program Director, Triple Play Farm
PATH Intl. Certified Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning [ESMHL]
PATH Intl. Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor [TRI]
Trauma Focused EAP / Natural Lifemanship and RhythmicRiding
CPR, First Aid and AED Certified
Mental Health First Aid Certified
Fairleigh Dickinson University
 

Tracy began volunteering with a therapeutic riding program in 2005, and earned her PATH Intl. Instructor Certification in the Spring of 2007. Her time in the arena was focused primarily on youth with special needs, including Down Syndrome, Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy and other genetic or learning disorders. After spending 8 years on the therapeutic riding side of the equine therapy industry, Tracy was ready to expand her knowledge and experience toward mental health interventions, and she became certified as a PATH Intl. Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning. Shortly thereafter, Tracy furthered her education by completing Natural Lifemanship and RhythmicRiding certifications.

With the variety of experience that Tracy has had within the field, she is a natural fit in assisting in the growth of our organization. In addition to being an on-staff Equine Specialist, Tracy maintains a seat on the Board of Directors for Equuvation and is instrumental in guiding the direction of our programs and impact.

When Tracy is not working in the EAAT field, she is spending time with her family and three golden retrievers, Rascal, Lucy and Denver. Lucy is currently in training to become a Certified Therapy Dog. 

Janice Kiley, LCSW

Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
Master of Social Work Degree, New York University, New York, NY
Bachelor of Science Degree in Psychology, University of New York College at Oneonta

After earning her Masters of Social Work from NYU, Janice began her career as a clinician working in the field of developmental disabilities, in addition to maintaining a small private practice. After later moving to North Carolina from New York with her family, she worked at several community based outpatient clinics, and had the opportunity to work with adults, adolescents and children. While there she provided individual therapy, play therapy, family therapy and crisis intervention.

Janice uses a variety of treatment modalities in sessions, firm in the belief that sessions should be individualized to the client's needs. Her clinical training was rooted in strengths-based perspective and systems theory, as well as cognitive behavioral therapy. She also believes strongly in utilizing play therapy when working with children under 10; and is dedicated to remaining adaptable to other methods along the way.

Despite being new to the world of equine-facilitated psychotherapy, Janice has become a quick and passionate “convert” to the world of therapy outside of the office. Her honest, compassionate and kind approach pairs well with guiding clients through developing a relationship with horses and nature as a way to seek healing and personal growth.

In addition to her clinical career, Janice is the co-founder of Haven's Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit organization founded in 2016 after her daughter, Haven Eileen, unexpectedly lost her life to a genetic disorder. Faced with this unexpected tragedy, Janice and her husband Brian were not prepared for the days leading up to her death and the grief they experienced following it; however, they did feel as though they were surrounded by amazing people and organizations who supported them. Their experiences motivated Janice to want to find a way to help others who were experiencing childhood trauma and/or illness as they had. Through this desire they developed Haven’s Foundation as a way to provide support to children and families struggling with illness and trauma; as well as the facilities and organizations who support them.

Janice is truly an inspiration to others, leading by example as someone who has overcome many obstacles in life, and able to find her truth path and calling to help others. When she's not at the ranch, she can be found spending time with her husband, daughters and dogs – or relaxing outside on a beautiful day with a good book.

Rosie Molinary

Author, Educator
BA in African-American Studies and Urban Education Issues – Davidson College
MFA-Creative Writing – Goddard College
www.rosiemolinary.com

As a radical self-acceptance champion, Rosie uses profound questions and wholehearted connection to empower people to treat themselves well so they can connect with their talents and passions to authentically and intentionally live their purpose and help heal the world.

The author of Beautiful You: A Daily Guide to Radical Self Acceptance (Seal Press) and Hijas Americanas: Beauty, Body Image, and Growing Up Latina (Seal Press), Rosie teaches at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, serves as a national Dove Self-Esteem Project educator, offers workshops and retreats, and speaks on self-acceptance, body image, self-care, media literacy, the Latina experience, and intentional living around the country. Rosie also serves as a creative catalyst to companies and brands that wish to provide a synergistic, empowered and soulful experience to their clients and employees as they serve the world through workshop and retreat facilitation and consultation.

A committed activist, Rosie helped found HAMMERS, a non-profit initiative to provide emergency home repair for low income families in her community, and Circle de Luz, a non-profit that radically empowers young Latinas by supporting their transformation through extensive mentoring, holistic programming and scholarship funds for further education.

When she is not busy affecting radical change, Rosie spends time white-knuckled at her son's baseball games, and at home with her family and hunky dog, Hank.

“Put quite simply, equine-assisted learning is profound. In the capable hands of an equine specialist, you are linked with magnificent equine creatures whose intuition is so astute, that through their reactions to you, you observe your own actions through a whole new lens. Each time I have witnessed or experienced equine-assisted learning or therapy, I walk away not just profoundly moved but also wiser and inspired with greater growth achieved in those simple moments with a horse in nature, than I might have been able to squeeze out in hours using other modalities.” – Rosie Molinary

Hunter H. McIntosh

Board of Directors – Equuvation
President, The Boat Company
Board Member, ClientEarth USA
Board Member, AFFTA
Board Member, Sacred Heart University
Board Member, The McIntosh Foundation

Hunter H. McIntosh is a true guardian of our natural world. Inspired by a family legacy of environmental education, philanthropy and conservation that protects our natural resources for future generations, Hunter is steadfast on working towards efforts to preserve nature and share it with others.

Where some kids dedicated themselves to baseball or football, a young Hunter committed himself to observing the annual nesting of sea turtles near his hometown of Palm Beach, Florida. His teenage and college years were full of outdoor activities and sports, including a love for horses and equestrian endeavors. As an adult, he worked side by side with his father to redefine sustainable tourism. It was not just enough to talk about preserving the environment, the McIntosh family created an intimate experience for The Boat Company guests that included education, awareness and the cultivation of passion for a special place on earth in desperate need of protection. 

Hunter is proudly carrying on the family legacy of conservation and philanthropy, with many of his endeavors focused on issues of health, conservation and education through his work as Trustee and Director of the McIntosh Foundation and as a longtime donor to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. He is also the founding supporter of the Florida State University women’s soccer program. 

When he’s not in Alaska, Washington D.C. or Jacksonville, FL, Hunter enjoys fly fishing and exploring the world with his wife Amber and daughter, Aspen.

“Hunter's commitment to conservation and his leadership in the industry is proof of the incredible impact that one individual can have in making our planet a better place.” –Philippe Cousteau

Our Ranch + Discovery Trail Team