Jana Ewing Syvrud
Founder and Director
PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor
PATH Certified Equine Specialist
Jana Ewing Syvrud is the founder of Jake E's Riding Round Up and currently serves as the President of the Board of Directors. Jana lost her 3-year-old son, Jacob Eli Ewing, in a tragic non-equine related accident in April of 2010. Within days of losing her young son, she began to think about how she would ever find peace again and how she would like to reach out to other dealing with personal challenges. Jana's desire to help others living with special needs, tragic loss and daily challenges brought her to found Jake E's Riding Round Up in honor of Jacob. Today, she is thriving with her husband Paul Syvrud, her two sons Caleb and Hayden, her bonus daughter, Andrea, and is an active member of Glory of Zion Church in Corinth. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in education and music from Lamar University. Jana has extensive experience working with those seeking to find courage, peace and hope through prayer and the therapeutic value of a horse-human partnership.
Personnel
Rose Ingram
PATH Intl. Certified Riding Instructor
PATH Certified Equine Specialist
Personnel & Facility Compliance
Rose has owned and been involved with horses since 1988. She has volunteered at Jake E's since 2014 while working on her PATH Certifications. She first received her certification as PATH Certified Equine Specialist and then as a PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor. She also lends her talents of attention to detail and compliance as our Standards and Policies Manager. Her God-given passion is working with horses and adults and children with special abilities.
Patty Milligan
PATH Intl. Certified Riding Instructor
PATH Certified Equine Specialist
Patty, originally from El Paso, has lived all over the country with her husband David and their children, while David served in the military. In the past, she has served in a variety of volunteer roles with non-profits such as the Girl Scouts and the Canton Trail Riders. Working with clients and students at Jake E's has allowed Patty to fulfill a lifelong dream of working with horses in a therapeutic setting. Patty believes the Lord guided her to Jake E's during the center's 2011 grand opening. She joined us as a volunteer shortly after in the spring of 2012. A skilled equestrian that loves sharing her equine knowledge, Patty became a PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor in July of 2013.
Marla Stegall
Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning'
Debbie Emard
Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning
Marla has been a cowgirl all her life and loves all animals that come along with that lifestyle. Navigating through her own trials and struggles in life has led her to help others, and she will be the first to tell you that she is so grateful to God for leading her to Jake E's because it has saved her life. She joined us as a volunteer in 2017 and became a PATH Certified Equine Specialist in 2019.
Debbie was born and raised in the Dallas area. Debbie, her husband, and children moved to country living in Poetry in 1995 after 19 years of city living in Garland. Debbie has always loved all animals but especially horses. She worked as a banking officer many years, then became a Special-Ed Paraprofessional. She also volunteers at her church in the special needs class and does respite care for families she's met on her journey. Debbie's heart is always for serving others. In 2008 her son, Jonathan, was killed in action (KIA) in Iraq. Wanting to serve Veterans, God led her to Jakes in March 2012. She started volunteering, combining her love of horses and those with disabilities and Veterans. Helping others is healing for herself. She studied and became a PATH Certified Equine Specialist in 2018 and continues to volunteer.
Kathryn Shindoll
Administrative and Personnel Support
Kathryn graduated from Mary-Hardin Baylor with a BA in Education, as well as from A&M Commerce
with a Masters in Education. She taught 1 st grade for 8 years in Mesquite ISD and then moved to Zambia
for 8.5 years. There she served as the Program Director for Family Legacy Missions International as they
worked to set up schools and ensure education for all. Before returning to Texas, Kathryn started riding
horses and fell in love. She began volunteering at Jake E’s in 2020. She now serves as an Equine
Specialist and Jake E’s Administrative and Personnel Support as she combines her love of horses and her
heart for serving people.
Linda Toth
Equine Coordinator
Linda grew up in a military family with a lifelong interest in horses. She holds a bachelor's degree of Science in Psychology and while living in upstate NY completed Horsemanship/Equine Science classes focusing on Health Care, Pasture Management, Equine Psychology, Behavior and Confirmation. Linda is an Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning; brings 28 years of personal horse experience across many different disciplines; and prides herself on fostering a tradition of quality care and safe horsemanship.