Interviewed Katie Wooldridge:
What in your educational background most prepared you for this job?
"Before this job I was working for a company called the Pony Club it's a complete horse community, I started when I was 8 until I was 21."
What specific skill training helped you prepare for this job?
"Having a lot of horse background taking horse lessons, I grew up with horses I also did any have any kid care background so it helps a lot. Patience a lot is something you need to have. I also being flexible and diverse background will help you out with time and kids and horses. Plus going to a school that helps you with lesson riding is a big part as well."
How do you interact with other people in your work?
"We try and keep it light and easy which leads into the culture you create, we try to keep it fun and easy. I've had experience with a job where it was doing exactly what your told and we want to be able to have volunteers be comfortable because this is a career option and we started this to see the value because I've seen volunteers struggle we wane to see the value in everyone so everybody feels important."
To what extent do you find your work interesting and fulfilling and why?
"Coming from not wanting to have this as a job and now coming to realize the bonding with families is just amazing. What that can do for you as a instructor and someone else as a rider is just awesome feeling to know that you've helped so many families out, it's tremendous."
What are the most important rules or practices that you must follow in order to be considered a professional?
"You always want to be safe and given that we work with horses that are unpredictable and we know exactly what we are doing and teamwork is a huge part and so is communication. We want to make the volunteers be able to say that they would rather work with another kid or a different horse because without volunteers this program wouldn't be where it is now."
Is this a typical work day for you?If not what is?
"It was much slower day. Im usually here by 10 and I'm constantly riding and grooming. Volunteers get here usually around 12-1 helping out and then I have lessons I have with kids."
Reflection:
Some things I found interesting on this day was how much they trusts the horses because they would tell me to go into the stable and put they herdle over the horse to get it ready for the lesson. So i really enjoyed how much they trust me and the horses. They also let me groom the horses which was a big help for them because it needed to get done. I can see myself doing this for a little as an experience job but I wouldn't want to do this as a career. I think the education to work here is mainly just experience, because it's a small little company/organization they mainly just look for people who know what they are doing, but currently it doesn't look like they are looking for new employes, mainly just volunteers. My dream internship for next year would to be able to see what zookeepers do and kinda see if I'm interested in that filed of animals because I still don't know exactly what I want to do.
What in your educational background most prepared you for this job?
"Before this job I was working for a company called the Pony Club it's a complete horse community, I started when I was 8 until I was 21."
What specific skill training helped you prepare for this job?
"Having a lot of horse background taking horse lessons, I grew up with horses I also did any have any kid care background so it helps a lot. Patience a lot is something you need to have. I also being flexible and diverse background will help you out with time and kids and horses. Plus going to a school that helps you with lesson riding is a big part as well."
How do you interact with other people in your work?
"We try and keep it light and easy which leads into the culture you create, we try to keep it fun and easy. I've had experience with a job where it was doing exactly what your told and we want to be able to have volunteers be comfortable because this is a career option and we started this to see the value because I've seen volunteers struggle we wane to see the value in everyone so everybody feels important."
To what extent do you find your work interesting and fulfilling and why?
"Coming from not wanting to have this as a job and now coming to realize the bonding with families is just amazing. What that can do for you as a instructor and someone else as a rider is just awesome feeling to know that you've helped so many families out, it's tremendous."
What are the most important rules or practices that you must follow in order to be considered a professional?
"You always want to be safe and given that we work with horses that are unpredictable and we know exactly what we are doing and teamwork is a huge part and so is communication. We want to make the volunteers be able to say that they would rather work with another kid or a different horse because without volunteers this program wouldn't be where it is now."
Is this a typical work day for you?If not what is?
"It was much slower day. Im usually here by 10 and I'm constantly riding and grooming. Volunteers get here usually around 12-1 helping out and then I have lessons I have with kids."
Reflection:
Some things I found interesting on this day was how much they trusts the horses because they would tell me to go into the stable and put they herdle over the horse to get it ready for the lesson. So i really enjoyed how much they trust me and the horses. They also let me groom the horses which was a big help for them because it needed to get done. I can see myself doing this for a little as an experience job but I wouldn't want to do this as a career. I think the education to work here is mainly just experience, because it's a small little company/organization they mainly just look for people who know what they are doing, but currently it doesn't look like they are looking for new employes, mainly just volunteers. My dream internship for next year would to be able to see what zookeepers do and kinda see if I'm interested in that filed of animals because I still don't know exactly what I want to do.