LEAD THE WAY
SEE has established a steering committee of predominantly Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) equestrians and active allies from across the eventing community.
Leadership Team
Heather Gillette, Co-Founder
Heather is a lifelong Eventer, Teacher, & Trainer who owns and runs Heron's Landing Eventing in Tewksbury, NJ. She has been a USEF Licensed Eventing Dressage Judge & Technical Delegate since 2019 and very much enjoys it. A graduate 'A' Pony Clubber from Spring Valley Hounds PC in NJ, Heather has competed primarily OTTBs from BN to 5* level, currently with Vincent Chase at 4*.
Anastasia Curwood, Co-Founder
Anastasia (“Stacy”) Curwood grew up in Cambridge, MA, and started riding at age 9 and eventing and Pony Clubbing at age 14. She took some chunks of time off from riding while in college at Bryn Mawr (PA), but she’s been in the saddle since, riding through Training Level eventing and Second Level dressage as an Adult Amateur. Stacy received a Ph.D. in U.S. History from Princeton with a specialty in African American History in 2003. She writes about Black women’s intellectual and political work in the 20th century. She published one book in 2010 and has another one nearly done. In 2014, she took a faculty job at the University of Kentucky. She has 2 OTTBs: Cat Burglar, aka Taco the Wonder Horse, retired, and her current competitive partner Rock Hard Attitude, or Biggie in the barn.
Catherine Reddick
Catherine Reddick started riding at age four in northern Illinois and evented through training level. She stopped riding to attend college at the University of Pennsylvania. As online streaming of major three-day events and eventing analytics became available, she became an eventing fan from a distance. In 2019, she returned to riding and is now relearning the basics as an adult. During the two decades she was away from horses, Catherine became a competitive rower and then helped establish Philadelphia City Rowing (PCR), a free competitive rowing and positive youth development program with a mission to empower Philadelphia public school students to reach their greatest potential. She continues to serve on the board of PCR and is also a member of USRowing’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee. When she isn’t playing sports, she is a Principal at Mercator Advisors, a consulting firm specializing in transportation infrastructure finance.
Sally Spickard
Sally Spickard joins SEE with a background in journalism and communications. Sally spent seven years as a freelance writer and editor for equestrian publications including Eventing Nation, Heels Down Magazine, and NöelleFloyd.com. She currently serves as the Managing Editor of Eventing Nation. Sally believes in the power of sports to foster community and has made it her ongoing goal to contribute to a more diverse and inclusive world, beginning with equestrian sports. Adopted from South Korea and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Sally studied journalism at the University of Georgia and now resides in San Diego, California.
Madison Buening
Madison is a young equestrian and college student in SE Wisconsin. A student at UW Madison, she is pursuing a major in interior architecture and a certificate in sustainability, but she still makes time for her OTTB Finn. The pair are currently taking a break from showing in the hunters to go back to the basics and rebuild confidence after a bad fall last year. When not studying or managing Finn’s health, she enjoys watching Netflix, cooking, and participating in social discourse. She is very excited to be a member of SEE and will bring her voice and experiences as a Latina equestrian to the table. Madison is passionate about creating a space where other BIPOC and aspiring equestrians will be able to share their voices and make themselves heard. Madison will work towards encouraging diversity and equality within the equestrian community and believes that SEE will aid in achieving those goals.
Photo Credit: Studio 360 Photography
Erin Tomson
Erin grew up riding and working on her family’s boarding farm in Washington State. She is a graduate A from Pony Club, an organization that she credits with giving her a solid foundation in riding and horse management, as well as teamwork, leadership, and the importance of giving back to one’s community. She competed successfully in eventing through the preliminary level with her OTTB, Gus, who is now retired and living a life of luxury on the family farm. She is currently bringing along her young horse, Flying B Sand Creek (Sandy), volunteering at Area VII events, and actively working to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion in her spheres of influence. In her professional role, Erin is a strategic communication professor in the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University. She earned a master’s degree (2006) and a Ph.D. (2010) in communication, and her teaching and research focus on crisis prevention and response planning for nonprofit organizations, professional presentation skills, and creating an inclusive learning environment for any and all types of students. Erin is honored and excited to bring her communication expertise to SEE!
Julia Sykora Bursten
Julia is a philosophy professor and at the University of Kentucky, where she teaches and researches the philosophy of science and has held research grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Science Foundation. She spends all her spare time (and, thanks to zoom, some of her class time!) as the assistant farm manager at Bourbon Hill Farm. Julia is an adult amateur eventer who spent the first 20 years of her riding life competing all-around with American Quarter Horses. She and her off-track thoroughbred Temba (“Security Check Required”) currently show at beginner novice.
As a queer person and a Jewish person, Julia often felt alienated around her horse friends growing up—there are a lot of decorative crosses on Western gear. Moving to eventing and finding other riders from more diverse backgrounds there has helped her to feel more comfortable in her own skin on horseback, and she is passionate about creating opportunities for other riders to experience that comfort and joy.