Jimmy grew up in Rockville, Maryland, right outside of Baltimore. As a child, he started working with horses on a local show horse farm and rode friends’ horses in the area. Since then, and throughout many experiences in his life, he has felt a connection to these animals.
After overcoming personal challenges in his life, Jimmy looked to settle down and start fresh in upstate New York. Over the years, he had landscaping, gardening, and construction jobs, so he settled in the Saratoga Springs area when the opportunity arose for a maintenance job at Erin Sisk’s private mental health office. When Jim and Erin Sisk purchased the THS farm in 2015, Jimmy started working on that property and was immediately comforted by the presence of their horses. He found that taking care of the horses during his workday brought him so much peace from the daily stresses of life that he often ended up sticking around just to spend more time with them after hours. Because of these interests, Jimmy decided to get certified through the O.K. Corral Series as an Equine Specialist so that he could assist in the sessions that Erin began to provide in the community.
Jimmy enjoys equine therapy because he loves helping people open up through their relationships with the horses. He appreciates how horses form attachment relationships with individuals and how that can create self-confidence and comfort in times of need. He has felt that having horses in his life has made him a better person, and he wants to be able to share that benefit with others as well.
As Superintendent of Facilities at THS, Jimmy manages the grounds and ensures that the farm is maintained for the care of our horses. Jimmy’s role at THS as an Equine Specialist is to ensure safety and provide feedback by reading both the client’s and horses’ body language and looking for valuable metaphors that can be used in real-life situations.
Jimmy has a sweet and energetic dog named Brook who follows him everywhere he goes on the farm – especially when he is on the tractor!
