empowered by horses & friends
Grew out of a heart-felt desire to connect with and live in harmony with animals and the natural world
After high school, I moved to Vancouver, earned a BA in Criminology and Psychology, and became a Vancouver Police Constable. The job’s challenges led me to reconnect with horses, particularly my new horse, Shady, which helped restore my mental health. However, increasing workplace stress and lack of support led me to leave and start Unbridled Potential Equine Services, later founding EBH&F in 2010.
Originally aimed at empowering girls, EBH&F expanded to support vulnerable youth, neuroatypical kids, and first responders. We now include a team of skilled facilitators and offer training in animal-assisted practices. Our mission focuses on integrity, connection, ethics, and animal wellness, establishing EBH&F as a leader in the field.
the team
carla Webb
BA, Pro-EFW M,Ed in progress, Trainer, Mentor and Facilitator
Carla Webb is an Equine Facilitated Learning Professional, Equine Professional, Pro-EFW Mentor (Professional Association for Equine Facilitated Wellness) and Life & Wellness Coach. She is currently working on her M.Ed in Humane Education at Antioch University and is designing a professional Animal Assisted training program for Rhodes Wellness College. A believer in lifelong learning, Carla is also studying with Equusoma (Horse~Human Trauma Recovery) and MiMer (International Equine Education and Research Centre) to deepen her knowledge of somatic centered practices.
While Carla has partnered with horses for over 40 years, she has also built strong relationships based on choice, consent and ethical considerations with donkeys, pigs, sheep and chickens. It is her belief that all animals are sentient beings and as such deserve the utmost in care and respect. Carla is exceptional at creating safe spaces for her clients and animal partners. She understands the healing nature of attunement and works hard to foster respectful relationships between humans and the natural world.
After fifteen years of full-time client practice Carla is currently focussing on teaching, mentoring and consulting the next generation of Animal Assisted, Nature-Based and Equine Facilitated Wellness professionals. She has collaborated with Honour Ranch, Rhodes Wellness College and the University of Fraser Valley, and multiple social service agencies such as Mission Hospice, Abbotsford Hospice, PCRS Traverse and Surrey Schools
Carla lives in Abbotsford at Anam Cara Farm and Learning Center with her life partner, Steve, six horses, two miniature horses, two miniature donkeys, three sheep, six pigs, five chickens, two dogs, and three cats.
Kirsten Hargreaves
Kirsten Hargreaves is a Registered Clinical Counsellor with the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors. Kirsten is lighthearted and playful by nature and specializes in child and youth mental health with children ages 6-12. Kirsten has worked in human services for 25 years and private practice as a registered clinical counsellor for 10 years focusing her counselling work with children in foster care and kinship, children with experiences of complex trauma, grief and loss and children with extra needs.
Kirsten has a Montessori Teaching Diploma, an Autism certificate in ABA, a B.A in Psychology from UVIC, a Masters Degree in Counselling Psychology with a focus in children and youth and is currently a Doctoral student at SFU focusing in canine assisted therapy. Kirsten is also informed by Play Therapy training, Equine Facilitated Wellness training and holds canine assisted intervention specialist training through the University of Denver.
Kirsten is a relationally focused, child centered therapist. Kirsten operates from a strength-based approach believing that safety and connection is paramount to any therapeutic relationship. Kirsten is a strong ally for 2SLGBTQ youth and welcomes all children, youth and families on the gender and sexuality continuum. Psychoeducation and curriculum based work is sometimes brought into sessions including elements of cognitive behavioural therapy and solution focused therapy to enhance skills transfer to home, school and life. Kirsten specializes in canine assisted therapy and works with her two golden retrievers (Kona, aged 11) and Nalu (aged 6).
Jonathan Boudin
Registered Clinical Counsellor: traditional counselling, equine facilitated counselling.
Jonathan is a Registered Clinical Counsellor and provides services in both a traditional office setting as well as outdoors on the farm with the inclusion of horses (and other animals). With over a decade of experience, he specializes in working with kids ages 8 and up, tweens, teens, and young adults. He is experienced in helping people with anxiety, depression, trauma (including PTSD), kid / teen issues, life transitions, relational challenges, and developmental challenges such as ADHD and FASD.
Jonathan believes that people and the challenges they face are unique. Drawing from evidence-based approaches such as cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), Lifespan Integration, Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy (EMDR) – one of the leading approaches in work with trauma, narrative therapy, and play therapy, the therapeutic experience is customized to meet those unique needs.
In addition to a Master’s degree in counselling psychology from UBC, Jonathan holds a post-master’s certificate in Equine Assisted Mental Health after attending a one-year program on the topic at the University of Denver. The inclusion of horses and other animals brings other sentient beings into the therapeutic process. It can help clients feel more comfortable, aid in reducing anxiety, help to explore and build healthy relationships, and provide unique ways of exploring problems and solutions in a live, in-the-moment way.
Whatever the approach, it all begins with a solid, trusting therapeutic relationship. Jonathan works with kids ages 8 and up, teens, and young adults of all genders. *Note that in some cases he will work with kids younger than 8. Please enquire.
Lindsay Bouillet
The Beginning:
As a child, Lindsay was the little girl rehabilitating all of the critters that her cats decided to bring home as ‘gifts’. Whether it was scaled, feathered, or furry, she believed every creature deserved the same amount of love, care, and respect. She spent her summers working at a local stable to pay for riding lessons but soon found her passion in rehabilitating and building trust, partnership, and understanding with mistreated race horses. She continues to live by this philosophy today, by continuing to volunteer in animal rescue, training with The Pacific Assistance Dogs, teaching violence prevention and self esteem workshops within the school system, and partnering with multiple therapeutic farms in the lower mainland collaborating on programs that reconnect kids and adults alike with nature and partnership with animals. Despite some of the challenges these animals have experienced, they maintain a will to survive and a willingness to trust and love again. Their persistence moved her, and in Lindsay’s belief, people and animals have a strong connection because of this resilience. We can help each other learn, heal and grow, through patience and understanding, one human, one animal at a time.
The Study:
Lindsay holds accreditation as a life coach, professional counsellor, trauma informed yoga teacher and certified FEEL (Facilitated equine experiential learning) practitioner. She has completed an apprenticeship with Soaring Eagle Nature School and is in the process of completing her training as an end of life/relationship doula with the conscious dying institute.
The Philosophy:
Although Lindsay’s path has been somewhat unconventional, she now applies both the learning’s of her own colorful self-developmental journey along with her professional training towards her own practice to create an experience that is unique to you. It is Lindsay’s belief that our perception of our challenges plays a significant role in the outcome of these challenges, and that an outside perspective can be critical in shifting limiting perspectives. Lindsay believes you hold the answers and there is untold value in the simple yet profound act of another human (or animal) understanding, listening and supporting you through your experiences. Animals provide an opportunity for self-reflection through clear, unbiased eyes. They mirror how we see ourselves, not just with heightened objectivity but also with greater forgiveness, allowing you to view your challenges from a new perspective.
Mary Waldolf
Mary Waldolf is a Social Worker (RSW, BSW) and Equine-Assisted Personal Development Coach (EAPDC). Mary grew up horse riding and show jumping, providing a solid foundation for being drawn to the relational piece and connection between herself and her horse. The significant healing and quiet solitude of being around animals led Mary to over a decade of volunteering in hippotherapy and therapeutic riding, guiding her to practice as a Therapeutic Riding Instructor for Pacific Riding for Developing Abilities and later certifying as an Equine-assisted Personal Development Coach through EAL Canada. Alongside her equine inclusive practice, Mary has worked in healthcare for the past eight years, most currently as an acute care Social Worker.
Mary combines her love for all animals with her trauma-informed social work practice. She respects client-directed goals and needs, uses a strengths-based approach while intuitively tailoring sessions to meet individuals where they are at. Mary’s sessions honor the horse partner’s ability to attune to emotions. Reading non- verbal cues, horses provide insightful feedback on the participant’s healing journey and ultimately help us recognize how we interact and impact those around us.
Mary graduated from the University of the Fraser Valley with a Bachelor of Social Work degree and Professional Communications. She continues to further her education in order to deepen her clinical practice and the integration of therapeutic modalities.
Mary’s special areas of interest are adolescent Issues, anxiety & panic attacks, assertiveness, communication issues, eating disorders, emotional overwhelm, relationship issues, social skills, trauma recovery, and major life transitions.
Steven Robert Kennedy
Steve is the backbone of Anam Cara Farm and Learning Center. His carpentry skills, craftsmanship and all-round mechanical knowledge, enabled him to not only build the farm from the ground up but keep it in fine running order. Plus, he takes care of the animals and assists with most groups. But Steve brings even more to the team. Through years of camping, hiking and woodcraft with his grandfather, Steve learned about the forests and its inhabitants, developing a deep sense of wonder about the natural world and our place within it. In 2006, Steve found a kindred spirit in Carla Webb and together they began manifesting their vision of a healing and learning center.
Steve is a keen student of life. From his childhood spent running tame in the wilds to his annual week-long getaways with old friends, the outdoors nurtures him. With countless hours spent around the campfire, Steve is now an avid storyteller, weaving the woods and farm life into tales about what makes us tick. Each story combines fact (and maybe a little fiction) that helps us understand who we are without even knowing we had asked the question.
Steve believes that all beings deserve the right to have a good life whether it’s the coyote searching for chickens or the stray cats that ultimately end up on his lap. His recipe for a healthy lifestyle includes mindful living, respectful bonds between people and animals, and a gorgeous sunset over the barn he and friends just built.
