Our Founders

Hallie Sheade, PhD, LPC-S, RPT-S
Executive Director

I grew up in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. I fell in love with horses at age 2, begging to ride a pony at a local carnival without my mother holding my hand. When I was 9, I mucked stalls and groomed horses in exchange for free riding time, but the journey that led me to start Equine Connection Counseling and now S.T.E.P.S. With Horses really began the day Cowman arrived at the barn. He was a former rodeo horse that had a reputation for being strong willed and uncooperative. I believed he was just misunderstood. At the time, I often felt very misunderstood by my parents, so Cowman and I  had something in common. Every day, I would sit in Cowman's stall and groom him for hours as I told him all my troubles. Cowman and I soon bonded. When I would leave the stall, he would often grab the back of my shirt and pull me back in. Over the next few months, some interesting things started to happen. My relationship with my parents began to improve and Cowman started to cooperate with other riders. Cowman and I had formed a mutually beneficial bond that improved the quality of life for both of us.

My relationship with Cowman started me down a path that has led to:

• Achieving supervisor credentials as both a Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor and Registered Play Therapist Supervisor.

• Authoring recently-published book, Equine-Assisted Counseling and Psychotherapy: Healing Through Horses.
• Being named Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy Technical Editor for PATH Int.'s quarterly publication, Strides. 
• Having my equine assisted counseling models: Relational Equine-Partnered Counseling (REPC) and Equine-Partnered Play Therapy (EPPT) featured in Dr. Cynthia Chandler's, world-renowned expert in animal assisted therapy, textbook entitled Animal-Assisted Therapy in Counseling.
• Earning a PhD in Counseling at the University of North Texas where I pioneered two innovative models, REPC and EPPT. In my doctoral dissertation, I examined the effectiveness of REPC on the reduction of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in military veterans.
• Being named Chi Sigma Iota International's Outstanding Practitioner in 2015.
• Founding Equine Connection Counseling, a private practice for equine assisted counseling.
• Partnering with local universities to train interns and speak on animal assisted therapy in both undergraduate and graduate level courses at local universities such as University of North Texas, Tarleton University, Texas Woman's University, and Texas Christian University.
• Presenting at state, national and international conferences, and authoring manuscripts and articles on animal assisted therapy and Equine Assisted Counseling.
• Receiving certification through the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship (PATH) International as a Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor (CTRI) and Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning (ESMHL). I am currently a Faculty Candidate for the ESMHL Workshops and serve on the PATH Intl. committees, Health and Education Advisory Committee and Racial Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Work Group.
• Completing a Master of Science (M.S.) Degree in Counseling at Georgia State University.
• Attending the University of Miami  for Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degrees in Psychology and Biology, where I also volunteered at a horse rescue facility and participated as a member of the University Equestrian Team.
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I have come full circle. My journey started with the mutually beneficial bond she made with Cowman that improved the quality of life for both of us. Now I as helping others tap into the power of the horse-human relationship to do the same.

​Credentials: Ph.D. In Counseling, Licensed Professional Counselor Supervisor (LPC-S) in the state of Texas (#67848), and a Registered Play Therapist Supervisor (RPT-S); PATH Intl. CTRI, ESMHL

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Paul Ziehe, USMC Veteran, PATH Intl. CTRI/ESMHL

​I am a Fort Worth native raised in Benbrook. I enlisted into the United States Marine Corps Reserve in 1996, rising to the rank of sergeant. I was called to active duty and deployed with VMGR-234 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003 and again in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom II in 2004. I was honorably discharged in 2005 and will be forever proud to be a US Marine.

To further my equine education, I worked with a local cutting horse trainer to learn how to get horses started under saddle. I have also worked cattle in west Fort Worth and even taken a trip to New Mexico in 2012 riding and working cattle in the mountains. My latest experience began in 2014 when I started serving as an Equine Specialist for Equine Connection Counseling.

I am  excited and proud to be a part of S.T.E.P.S. with Horses! I knows that veterans, their families, and at-risk youth are underserved populations, and I have seen how the REPC (Relational Equine- Partnered Counseling) and EPPT (Equine-Partnered Play Therapy) models have impacted lives for the better. I strongly believe in the S.T.E.P.S. with Horses mission and that S.T.E.P.S. with Horses will become an innovative leader in the equine-partnered therapy field.
Credentials:  Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor (CTRI) and Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning (ESMHL) ​

Our Staff

Laura  Hamrin, PATH Intl. CTRI/ESMHL, CHA Certified
Equine Manager

 At STEPS, I serve in the role of Equine Manager, Equine Specialist, and Therapeutic Riding Instructor. I work with all disciplines helping to build confidence in both the horse and the client. I am a CHA IRD clinic staff, CHA standard certified, and a  PATH CTRI/Mentor and ESMHL certified. I am committed to strengthening the equine-assisted services industries and enjoy mentoring and training new professionals.

Credentials:  PATH Intl. Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor (CTRI) and Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning (ESMHL); CHA Certified 

Kelsey Kerr, MS, LPC Associate/PATH Intl. ESMHL
Under the supervision of Hallie Sheade, PhD, LPC-S, RPT-S

I am a LPC Associate with a master’s in clinical mental health counseling from Tarleton State University. Although I grew up around horses, I did not have much experience with them. In 2013, I met an American mustang that had minimal human contact and was deemed too dangerous and incapable of being gentled. When I first saw him, we connected eyes and I knew that we were meant to share a journey together. I saw him as a beautiful creature that was scared and frightened just as I was a young woman that felt lost and scared. I adopted the mustang, Drifter, and we began the process of developing a mutual bond. I spent nearly every day from sunrise to sunset with him. We developed a connection with one another that transformed both of our lives for the better. I found the relationship building process with Drifter to be an overall therapeutic and spiritual experience. 

Our relationship instilled in me a passion to pursue a career in Equine Assisted Counseling and treating trauma, depression, and anxiety. I have been a guest speaker for the Mustang Heritage Foundation’s Veterans & Mustangs program and have a special interest in working with veterans. In addition to counseling, I am also a Licensed Massage Therapist. My experiences as a massage therapist and as a counselor-in-training has led me to believe in the connection between the mind and body. I believe in acknowledging the affects that experiences have on individuals as a whole and that the experiential nature of equine assisted counseling allows for a therapeutic process that addresses both mind and body. ​

Credentials: MS In Counseling, Licensed Professional Counselor Associate in the state of Texas (#86555); PATH Intl. ESMHL

Juliet Mary Amelia Williamson, BA,
​Graduate-Level Counseling Intern
Under the supervision of Hallie Sheade, PhD, LPC-S, RPT-S

 I am a graduate-level counseling intern working towards a master’s in clinical mental health counseling from the University of Memphis. I was born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas and always knew this place had a special place in my heart. I have grown up with constant exposure to horses but did not pursue any lessons until graduate school. I have always known I wanted to tie animals into mental health but was never quite sure how to do it. Coming upon this field has changed my life for the better. I was a trail guide at Shelby Farms Park throughout the duration of my courses in Memphis and noticed that the days I was able to be around the horses, and simply spend time practicing my horsemanship skills, I was slowly showing confidence in other areas of my life. I was also noticing I was becoming more patient in my studies and in other stressful areas of my life. I believe animals have the ability to sense human emotion and that emotion can reach deep inside and touch people in their soul. If you can connect, you can start a new journey whether it is healing, love, comfort, decreased stress and or anxiety.