Staff

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Danny Ford, Director of Operations, PATH Int.l' Certified Riding Instructor

Danny was fortunate enough to serve in the U.S. Army early in life; experiencing life abroad. Later he found himself assisting in the facilitation of health care for some of his community working for Sutter Medical Foundation. Upon retirement, he wanted to spend some time volunteering at Project R.I.D.E. An organization that has given so much to his son Cristian, who's been riding horses there since 2007. He now feels extremely lucky to have full access to free daily therapy out at the Project R.I.D.E. barn: he gets lots of time with horses, other volunteers, and best of all the riders!

Emily Calanchini, Associate Director

Emily has wanted to work with children since early high school. She graduated from CSUS with her Bachelors in Child Development. Emily was interested in the uniqueness of Project R.I.D.E. and getting to work near children. She began working at R.I.D.E. in 2016 as a data entry clerk. Emily wears many hats as she has taught an 18 and Up Club, works on data entry, helps plan annual fundraisers, manages social media pages and the programs website, as well as assists with volunteer coordination. In her free time she loves going to Disneyland with her husband and daughter!

Tamara Lipanovich, Program Manager, PATH Int.l' Certified Riding Instructor, Equine Specialist in Mental Health & Learning

Tamara Lipanovich has ridden horses most of her life and enjoys riding a variety of disciplines from trail riding to jumping and dressage. When it comes to riding, she refers to herself as a “jack of all disciplines, master of none." Prior to Project RIDE, Tamara worked in education and in the non-profit field. Tamara graduated from CSUS with a Master’s Degree in Special Education. In addition to her instructor certifications Tamara holds a California Teaching Credential, a California Special Education Credential, and a California Child Development Program Directors Permit.

Suzi Lawton, Community Outreach Specialist

Suzi joined Project RIDE as a volunteer in 2008. With a past career in finance, Suzi now works in our office as a volunteer coordinator helping to ensure we have volunteer support for our program and helping to keep things running smoothly for our volunteers. Suzi is an avid animal lover. She currently has a flock of doves, chickens, 2 rescue bunnies, a feral cat community, and other small animals that come her way from time to time. Her favorite rescue was a baby opossum which she raised and released as an adult.

Jennifer Passanando, Volunteer Coordinator

Jennifer remembers volunteering as a young child. Her sister was one of the first riders at Project R.I.D.E. and her Mom became a Board Member. Jennifer always knew that she would be a part of Project R.I.D.E. but didn’t know in what capacity. Jennifer got her B.A. in Liberal Studies, Special Minor is Sign Language and her Masters in Communicative Disorders and Deaf Studies. She enjoys working and volunteering with the special needs community. Jennifer couldn’t be any happier to be part of the team at Project R.I.D.E. and seeing magic happen every day.

Genell Csik, PATH Int.l' Certified Riding Instructor, Equine Specialist in Mental Health & Learning

Genell came to Project RIDE as a volunteer in 2014 and knew this was where she was meant to be. She became a PATH Intl. Registered Therapeutic Riding Instructor in early 2015 and earned her PATH Intl. Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning certification in 2016. Genell values her time at Project RIDE as a way to give back to the community.

“Working at Project RIDE is special because every day our staff and volunteers decide to do something positive for others. I’m so happy to help make the magic happen for these amazing students and their families!”

Rise Grover, PATH Int.l' Certified Riding Instructor, Equine Specialist in Mental Health & Learning

Rise’s career at Project R.I.D.E. began in 2015, and like many staffers, she also started as a volunteer. In 2017, she became a PATH Int’l Registered Therapeutic Riding Instructor. Rise is a retired educator, who, with her family, lived overseas for many years. Rise has her B.A. from Cal Poly Pamona and her Masters Degree from Claremont Graduate School.

“Teaching at Project R.I.D.E. is an amazing experience. There are so many moving parts that make Project R.I.D.E. work and I love being a small part of this wonderful organization. It is the very special students with great staff and very dedicated volunteers that make it a privilege to say I work here!”

Gayle Stowell, PATH Int.l' Certified Riding Instructor, Equine Specialist in Mental Health & Learning

Gayle began interning at Project RIDE in 2016. In 2017 she became a PATH INT’l Registered Riding Instructor and then officially joined the staff at Project RIDE in 2018. She is a lifelong equestrian and can’t imagine doing anything else or working anywhere else.

“I love my job! I’ve been privileged enough to hear non-verbal children speak their first words on horseback and on a daily basis I get to see the physical benefits gained by those who climb into that saddle."

Siena Vincent, PATH Int.l' Certified Riding Instructor, Administrative Assistant

Siena was born and raised in the Elk Grove area. She has been riding horses competitively since she was a child. She graduated from California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo in June 2025, with a bachelor degree in agribusiness and minor in water policy. After graduation, Siena was looking for the next step. Having volunteered at Project RIDE when she was home from college for the past few years, she decided to pursue a PATH certification.

Along with working on her certification, she has also joined the team in the office. She loves spending time at RIDE with the riders, horses, and volunteers. In her spare time, Siena enjoys baking (and eating) bread and desserts, spending time with family and friends, and being active outdoors.

Natalie Ford, Ranch Caretaker

Natalie has been volunteering for several years at Project RIDE. Her brother Cris has been riding at Project RIDE since 2007. Natalie also graduated in 2024 with her Associates in Medical assisting. She has always loved riding horses and found that it is truly therapeutic for her personally. Now being a part of Project RIDE and getting to spend all this time with horses is such a blessing. Project RIDE is truly such a magical place!

Tania Bastron, PATH Int.l' Certified Riding Instructor

Tania Bastron has loved horses since she was 6 years old, when she attended a horse camp one summer. Tania knew at an early age that she wanted to work with horses when she grew up; she earned a degree in Equine Business Management and Dressage. Tania’s brother attended Project RIDE briefly when he was little, and when she was old enough, she started volunteering. In 2024, Tania started her instructor training and passed her CTRI exam in February 2026, becoming an official PATH Therapeutic Riding Instructor. In May of 2026, Tania joined the Project RIDE staff, sharing her love of horses.

Kimberley Hettrick, President

Born and raised in South Sacramento and an Elk Grove resident since 2000, I am happily married with 3 beautiful children. My first career spanned 12 years in banking. My second career and current employment is with the State of California. I have proudly served on the Board of Directors for Project R.I.D.E., Inc., starting in 2002. My roles have included Treasurer, VP and President. There is no greater joy than seeing the happiness our program continues to bring to our riders!

Eric McDonald, Vice President

I have been a resident of Elk Grove/ Wilton for over 50 years. I attended Dillard elementary school in Wilton, Elk Grove high school and California State university at Sacramento. After a 30 year career with UPS, I was looking for an opportunity to give back to our Elk Grove community and Project Ride was a perfect fit. My mother, Mary Mc Donald was a volunteer at Ride many years ago and truly enjoyed helping this organization. I began volunteering here in 2009, and joined the board soon after. I have found Project Ride to be an extraordinary and very rewarding place to work.

Duane Tadlock, Secretary

Duane and Cassonda have been married for over 32 years. They manage the Baylee Rose Scholarship for Project R.I.D.E. Their daughter, Baylee Rose, passed away on 01-09-2010. She was a rider at Project R.I.D.E. for over 7 years. Duane has been on the Board for over 15 years.

Duane retired after serving as the Chief of the California Lottery. He served in law enforcement for over 40 years. Duane is a Terrorism and First Aid, CPR & AED instructor to local law enforcement. Duane is a Reserve SGT with the Placerville Police. He is a Brigadier General and has served in the California State Guard for over 40 years.

Syd Highley, Treasurer

After graduation from UCLA with a degree in Economics, Syd earned his accounting experience with the international firm Arthur Young & Company (now Ernst & Young). It was there he obtained the experience necessary to obtain the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) credential. Syd founded a CPA practice in 1988 which serves hundreds of individuals and small businesses with tax and accounting needs. Syd has been active in local community affairs by serving on the Board of the Elk Grove Chamber of Commerce for 6 years and now participates on the Board of Project R.I.D.E.

Gretchen Brink, Director

Gretchen has been involved with Project R.I.D.E. since 2014. She enjoys working with the kids, side walking, and working with the other volunteers. She is willing to do any job that needs to get done because she knows how important Project R.I.D.E. is to the community. Gretchen became a board member in 2018 and enjoys being part of this wonderful organization.

Jeff Alley, Director

I've been volunteering with Project R.I.D.E. since May 2019 and on the Board of Directors since Sept 2019. My profession is in Retail Management for 30+ years. I had some experience working with adults with special needs. Without knowing anyone, I checked out Project RIDE and was amazed that you could work with horses and kids with unique abilities.

This experience is one of the most rewarding things I've done. I'm married to my lovely wife, Nicole and we have son, Austin, who also volunteers. We love the outdoors and making amazing memories.

Kathy Ferroggiaro, Director

Kathy has been an Elk Grove resident since 1999. She retired in 2021 from the Elk Grove Unified School District having taught high school French for 35 years. She is married with two adult children both of whom went to school here in Elk Grove. After her beloved horse, Do Wah Ditty Ditty Do, or Sadie for short, passed in 2024, Kathy began volunteering at Project Ride. In 2025, she joined the Board of Directors. She is humbled and grateful to work with the staff and riders at Project Ride and looks forward to helping with everything that needs to be done to make the magic happen in the arena!

Diane McCargo, Director

Diane grew up with two ponies out in the country of Grass Valley and moved to Sacramento at the age of 19 to attend Western Career College for Chairside Dental Assisting. She worked for Yee Dental Care for 32 years before retiring in 2017. Along the way, she married Steve, moved to Elk Grove and had two daughters. Being retired with two grown children gave Diane the time to devote to Project Ride…something she wanted to do for many years. Diane loves horses and watching the children ride.

Staff & Board

The People Behind Project R.I.D.E.

Board of Directors and Staff