Our Humans

Allie’s passion for horses began when she was very young. At 12, Allie began taking riding lessons. She competed in the local jumping shows for a few years and then changed disciplines to dressage riding. Allie soon became a working student, helping and teaching others to care for and tack their horses.

At 16, Allie began volunteering for SPUR Therapeutic Riding Center in New Jersey. On her first day volunteering, Allie knew this was something she wanted to be involved with for a very long time. Allie continued to volunteer with SPUR for 8 years and was also camp director for the Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore’s horseback riding program.

In 2008, Allie moved to California and began volunteering and eventually working at a therapeutic riding center in San Diego. Here she met fellow friend and colleague Katie Cram who shared the same passion for horses and therapeutic riding as she did. In 2010, Allie began her journey to become a PATH Intl. certified riding instructor and passed her certification that same year. In 2014, Katie, Allie, and fellow horse and therapeutic riding enthusiast Wayne Jackson, finally decided it was time to open a new therapeutic riding center for the community. Allie is always looking for ways to further her knowledge and help grow the therapeutic riding community, in 2017 she became a PATH Mentor to help teach others with a passion for therapeutic riding.

When Katie was 8 she got her first pony and joined the United States Pony Club. There she learned how to ride, care for and maintain horses, and teach the difference horses can make in the lives of others. She competed locally and nationally in 3 day eventing, show jumping and dressage. Once out of Pony Club, Katie dabbled in western disciplines such as western dressage, and horsemanship challenges but her true passion remains with eventing.

In 2005 Katie began working at Helen Woodward Animal Center cleaning stalls. Within 6 months, she began teaching therapeutic riding lessons and became PATH Intl certified in 2006. While working at Helen Woodward, Katie met both Wayne and Allie, co-founders of Ride Above. She also gained more in depth knowledge on managing the care and training of therapeutic riding horses instead of sport horses. In 2012, Katie began working at PoVa Therapeutic Riding Center, expanding her knowledge about running a therapeutic riding center and learning what it takes to make it successful. In 2014 Katie, Wayne and Allie opened the doors to Ride Above where she is able to share her passion for horses. She is a big believer in always learning more and educating yourself, in 2017 Katie became a PATH Mentor to train upcoming therapeutic riding instructors.

Bonnie was hooked on horses after a trail ride at the age of 7. At 14, she got her first horse, a 3yr old Arabian Quarter Horse cross named Maja. She trained Maja with the help of her riding instructors and owned her for 30 years. They were together when Bonnie went to college, got married, had 2 babies, and for all their military moves.

Bonnie went to college in Florida on an Air Force ROTC nursing scholarship where she met her husband Scott, who was also in the ROTC program. Bonnie had a lot of different experiences in military nursing, but her favorite was pediatrics. She served for 6 years before staying home to raise her boys.

As they moved across the nation, Bonnie shared her love of horses with anyone who would let her. She taught her boys to ride, their friends, her friends, her kids’ babysitters…anyone who expressed curiosity about horses. She has ridden Western, Hunter/Jumper, and Dressage, but her favorite has always been Dressage. She believes a holistic horsemanship approach is important when teaching others about the amazing partnership people can develop with horses.

Bonnie moved to CA when Scott retired from the AF in 2018. She worked as a home healthcare nurse for children and adults and also started volunteering at RAD in 2018. This is where she met her new horse Vega, a retired therapeutic riding horse. In 2021, Bonnie decided to take a break from nursing and pursue her love of teaching others to ride. She feels honored to be an instructor at RAD, where she can continue to share her passion for horses in such a positive environment. She believes it’s the best of everything…kids, horses, and the beautiful outdoors.

Cyndie’s affinity for horses began after experiencing the pony rides her grand-dad took her on when she was a young child. From there, she grew up “horse crazy” and was fortunate to be able to ride and care for several different horses over the years, eventually owning a chestnut ex-race horse named D’lite. Taking lessons, jumping and trail riding around Poway became a favorite past time. Cyndie met Katie, Allie, Wayne, Mary and Amanda while volunteering at another therapeutic riding center. Inspired by RAD’s mission, it was natural for her to want to follow the team and be a part of the dream the founders had for RAD.

She may be passionate about horses, but she also has a heart for organization. Cyndie keeps the office running smoothly and provides administrative assistance to the Executive Director, Assistant Director and Program Director as well as lesson support working with the students and horses.

“I am so thankful to be a part of RAD. The dedication this team has for the students, their families, the volunteers, and the horses is a true example of love. I am inspired each week by the progress and pure joy I see in each student because of the selfless efforts of the staff and the volunteers of this organization.”

Jesus has always felt he had a natural connection to horses. Although he did not grow up around horses, he’s always appreciated horsemanship and always dreamed of having his own ranch. Jesus was born and raised in San Diego, a US Marine Corps veteran, and believes community involvement is really important. For many years, Jesus has been involved with various local youth organizations as a mentor and big brother. Working with youth and helping them grow and realize their potential is something Jesus is passionate about.

His first appreciation for horses was when he started trail riding in his early college years.
Throughout his travels, visiting various ranches across the West Coast to the Mid-West, his admiration and appreciation for horsemanship grew.

In 2018, after visiting Ride Above Disability for the first time, he was hooked and knew he had found a home. He was amazed with the work at RAD, and was thrilled to be a part of it. Through his natural bond with horses, Jesus believes that true horsemanship begins out of the saddle. The combination of working with youth and equine therapy, growing and helping others reach their potential, is what Jesus looks forward to each moment spent at the ranch.

Jesus strives to increase his equine knowledge every day and is passionate about teaching others the value of horsemanship. He’s also passionate about keeping the cowboy culture alive and sharing it with the younger generations.

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Kate took every opportunity to surround herself with horses when she was young. Riding lessons started at age 8, and then she went on to attend horse camp in Upstate New York for 3 years with the goal of learning more about horsemanship and the great outdoors.

During high school, Kate started working as a Teacher’s Assistant at a Preschool where she was able to gain experience in caring for young children. She also worked at a local pet store tending to different types of animals, and spent her summers as a lifeguard at her town pool. It was there that she began teaching swimming lessons to children with disabilities, and discovered that she had a knack for conducting play-based learning activities for students in such a way that is inclusive for all. She dreamed of finding a way to bring her two passions together – caring for both horses and people alike.

Kate went on to attend San Diego State University where she studied Psychology with a minor in Counseling and Social Change. She went on trail rides on the weekends and started looking for opportunities to volunteer at a barn nearby. A few years after graduating, Kate started volunteering at Ride Above Disability and hasn’t looked back since. She is absolutely thrilled to be an instructor at RAD now, where she is able to incorporate all of what she has learned, knowing that she is surrounded by fellow instructors and students that share the same love for bringing horses and people together.

As a young girl Amanda had a passion for horses, with posters covering every wall in her bedroom. For Amanda’s 10th birthday, her parents surprised her with riding lessons and her passion grew from there. By the time Amanda was 15 she was an assistant instructor, and by 16, the camp director at the barn where she was riding. After graduating high school she moved to San Diego for college, and took a year off from riding and teaching.

Amanda realized quickly that horses were missing from her life, and began volunteering at PoVa Therapeutic Riding Center. Within two months, Amanda started teaching lessons and her passion for teaching riding lessons had been rekindled. There Amanda met Wayne, Katie, Allie, and Mary. When Amanda heard about the creation of Ride Above and the plan for the program, it was an obvious choice to join the team in doing what she loves so much.

Lisa’s love of horses began with her love of reading.  She read every horse book she could find as a child including her favorite books by author Marguerite Henry. Lisa started riding at summer camps in Poway when she was 10 years old. The summer camps started early in the morning where she would clean stalls and groom horses with the reward of riding once all the chores were completed. Lisa continued riding on family vacations, with friends who had horses and did some jumping.

When Lisa’s daughter left for college in 2017, she looked for an activity to fill her weekends. As a former volunteer at Pomerado Hospital and the San Diego Hospice, she wanted to give back to the community.  A friend suggested combining her fondness for horses and her desire to serve which led to volunteering at RAD.  Lisa loved the feeling she experienced as a volunteer and fell in love with the students, staff and horses.

Lisa feels privileged to now be an instructor at RAD and share her love of horses with her students. She speaks on behalf of RAD at schools, clubs and other organizations to bring awareness to the community.

Claire's journey with horses began in her home state of Texas, riding during the summers with family and at camp as a kid. As life went on, time for riding became less and less. She went on to graduate from Texas A&M University with a degree in Business and minors in Graphic Design and Communication. Although life initially led Claire down a different path, her love for horses always remained.

Upon relocating to San Diego with her husband Pearson in 2021, Claire discovered RAD and began her journey as a volunteer. The bonds formed with the incredible community of volunteers, staff, horses, and students ignited a passion that led Claire to seek a career change and become an instructor. While Claire's academic background is rooted in business, her heart is firmly in the arena, focused on building confidence and fostering a positive environment. Claire believes in the transformative power of positive affirmations, aiming to instill in students a deep belief in themselves and their abilities.

What drives Claire in this rewarding work is witnessing the joy on a student's face after conquering a fear or mastering a new skill. Claire is motivated by the opportunity to help students achieve goals they never thought possible—a journey she finds endlessly fulfilling.

Wayne T. Jackson is a retired US Marine and cofounder of Ride Above Disability. Wayne grew up on a small farm outside Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. It was on this farm that Wayne’s passion for horses was sparked. By age 13. Wayne had begun breaking and training horses. Horses continue to be a large part of Wayne’s life. In 1994, Wayne left home for the United States Marine Corps. His twenty-year career was long and varied with Wayne serving a variety of jobs and locations.

In 2010, Wayne began volunteering at Helen Woodward Animal Clinic’s Therapy Riding Center. Here Wayne met the two women who would become central to his life in therapy riding, Allie Sarnataro and Katie Cram. Together these three would work or volunteer at several different therapy riding centers in and around the Greater San Diego area. These experiences formed the foundational principles upon which RAD was formed.

Wayne holds a Bachelor’s of Public Administration from National University and a Master’s in Organizational Leadership from Point Loma Nazarene University. His graduate and post-graduate fieldwork consists of lecturing at local universities on nonprofit governance and fundraising, cultural diversity and sensitivity training, and mentorship. Wayne has also served as a consultant and advisor to other nonprofit boards and leadership councils.