President: Gary Nelson

Gary was first introduced to horses at 8 years old when he met his neighbours horse Quincy Pop a Top, like many other horsemen, he fell in love with them almost immediately. He’s been involved in the horse community for roughly 15 years now, having active roles in both our club as well as the OBRA circuit. 

When Gary isn’t working hard on club matters, you can find him  volunteering his time with the Kingsville fire department, where he’s a well-respected captain. On the off chance that he is relaxing, you can find him smoking some cut of meat on his Traeger!   

Vice President: Beth Ruggaber

Beth convinced her parents to let her start lessons 17 years ago, and the rest was history – she was hooked! You’ll see her around the shows riding her 4 year old QH mare Chexys Super Nova, aka Nova. 

Beth is no stranger to the hard work involved in being part of a board of directors, having joined as a member at large around her 12th birthday! Over the past 16 years she’s held many different positions for various boards – secretary, treasurer, vice-president and president! She’s helped run and organize bowling leagues and tournaments, banquets and now horse shows! 

Treasurer: Ali Sauve

Ali started out riding in 2011 as an exchange student in France at the age of 14 years old, she continued her riding at Lazee G Ranch and worked at a family friends barn in exchange for riding time – without those opportunities she wouldn’t be the rider she is today! After only a few years involved in the club, Ali quickly saw the amazing opportunities we provided to help riders of all ages learn and grow with their horses; she herself is open and excited to continue her learning! 

Ali’s pets include a 2yo QH filly Malibu, Penny the bully and Poppy the daschund. She’s grateful for her Fiancé who has the patience to put up with the 4 female redheads that surround him! Ali looks forward to seeing everyone out at to the grounds this show season!

Secretary: Melanie Wolters

Melanie caught the horse bug at a young age and lived and breathed horses for many years before her parents bought her Gunner, a grey Arab gelding, at 12 years old. When she’s not at the barn you can find her keeping busy with a good book, playing or coaching volleyball, finding new adventure spots or spending time with “her people.” 

A piece of advice Melanie has is to surround yourself with people who push you to be the best version of yourself, those that “get” you no matter what. 

Bingo Coordinator: Ashlyn Miuccio

Ashlyn is a mother and horse enthusiast who took English lessons the majority of her youth , almost 20 years later, her childhood dream of having her own horse came true and she is now the proud owner of Dublin, a draft cross, and her daughters pony Johnny. Her knowledge and passion are in the English disciplines, but she continues to enjoy learning all about the western world as her daughter embarks on her journey of becoming a barrel racer! 

Ashlyn enjoys getting to know and spend time with people within the horse community, she’s excited to be part of SOTC and bringing horse people together for positive horse experiences at our events this year! 

Memberships: Cody Doherty

Cody has been involved in horses his whole life, following in his families footsteps who had been riding and showing since before he was born! When he’s not enjoying life on the back of a horse, or spending quality time with his inner circle you can find him soaking up the sun on a beach. 

A couple words of advice Cody has to offer others is that hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. He also finds its important to lead with kindness, but to not mistake that for weakness! 

Junior Advisor: Madison Francis

Carolyn Vacik

 Pam McFadden