Meet the Team
FOUNDER
Stacey Garcelon M.ED, NCC
Founder & Director
Stacey received her Master’s degree in education, with a concentration in clinical mental health counseling, at Indiana State University, South Bend. Stacey’s passion and life’s work is to help people heal emotional wounds, cultivate resiliency, and promote mental wellness. She does this by providing individual, couple, and group counseling, and also by advocating for trauma-informed practices in communities.
Stacey specializes in helping people recover from trauma, addictions, depression, grief, self-esteem/self-worth issues, and other behavioral/mental health issues. Stacey has a passion for serving veterans, active military, reservists, and their families. She served her internship and advanced practicum at the South Bend, Indiana, Veterans Center. Stacey has experience working with all ages, veterans, the LGBTQ community, and survivors of intimate partner violence. She believes in providing a client-centered holistic healing environment in which people are empowered to discover and to define their own solutions. She works with her clients using a blend of approaches including: traditional talk therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), the Eagala Model of equine–assisted psychotherapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), narrative/journaling, trauma–informed yoga, and other strategies so that she “meets” her clients at a particular point on their personal journey.
Stacey has been certified in the Eagala model since 2016 to 2022. She serves as Eagala’s networking coordinator for the State of Indiana. She has completed training in the practice of yoga to transform trauma and has started training in somatic experiencing, which focuses on getting participants to focus on their responses to stress. Through her work and her own healing journey, Stacey found that the approaches that focused on the physical, mental, energetic, and spiritual impacts of trauma proved to be the most effective and the most empowering forms of therapy. Stacey is a current member of the EMDR International Association, the American Mental Health Counselors Association, the American Counseling Association, and the Indiana Counseling Association.
Stacey has always had a love for horses and knows from firsthand experience the healing presence of the horse. When considering advancing her education, Stacey looked at the areas where she excelled and what she was passionate about. This resulted in the dream of Anam Cara, which was created in 2016 to help people heal through equine–assisted psychotherapy.
TEAM MEMBERS
Sophie Lott
Administrative Assistant
Sophie graduated from New Prairie High School in 2020. Sophie’s passion is caring for animals, specifically horses, as she has two of her own. She has a Quarter Horse named Bucky (pictured). And also Twister who is a pony. Sophie has had Bucky for 12 years and Twister for 6 years. Sophie is the youngest of two and she currently resides in Rolling Prairie with her family. During her quiet time, Sophie enjoys reading books and being with her horses. She also enjoys working at Anam Cara and interacting with the horses.
Sandy Cogswell
Equine Specialist
When the boys became young men and on their own is when her journey began to learn the horse. She has been around horses since high school age and had a uneasy feeling about the way horses were handled, at least in her world. It wasn’t until her horse reared up and fell on her she realized she had to learn how to train, or better said communicate with the horse or there would not be horses in her life and that was not going to happen, thus began this fascinating subject she cannot get enough of. She has learned the more you know about horses the more you know you don’t know.
This passion is what led her to the realization of horses can help humans other than just riding them. She meet Stacey Garcelon the first time September 2015. Stacey told her of her desire to help people with trauma using horses and psychotherapy. Sandy never heard of such a thing.
They went to their first eagala certification in May 2016.
She is certified in eagala
Certified in Horse Powered Reading.
Completed the non profit leadership course that Healthcare foundation of LaPorte provided. Completed the fundamentals of serving veterans with Horses.
Caitlyn Kalisik, MSW
Veterans Group Facilitator
Caitlyn served in the Marine Corps for four years as a Motor Transportation Operator and honorably discharged, achieving the rank Sergeant in 2018. Not long after, Caitlyn completed her Social Work degree at Purdue University- Northwest. Today, Caitlyn is a Masters of Social Work student with the Ohio State University, and a therapy intern with Anam Cara. Being a “jack of all trades”, Caitlyn is working towards creating more resources in the community for marginalized groups. Caitlyn hopes to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and open her own private practice in Houston, TX where she specializes in treating trauma.
Tiffany Downs
Equine Specialist
When I was 12 years old, my family and I went for our yearly trail ride at the local riding stable. It was then that I knew horses were going to be a large part of my life.
I acquired my first pony about that time and I worked at this local stable after school to pay off his board.
I never really took official riding lessons but learned how to ride by just riding my pony, Tucker, as fast as we could go through the open field and pastures. He really did teach me all I ever needed to know about riding and maneuvering through life in general.
I did not come from a family surrounded by horses and farms. Oddly enough, my interests then and now are quite different.
Nether the less, I got every book I could find on horses. I checked out every book at the library with a horse on the cover. I was passionate.
Working at the barn from age 12 to 16 really helped me to establish a good work ethic and granted me with a great knowledge of responsibility. It was then I decided to go for the “big girl” job and left to explore different career opportunities.
In 2012, I became certified as a yoga instructor and managed a studio for a few years among other things. But, there was always this yearn to go back to the barn. To be outside and be out feeding the horses in the early mornings before anyone else was awake! I craved that. And I missed it.
It was absolutely time to get back at it. It was time to really figure out what I was actually going to do with my life.
During my yoga teacher training and while teaching classes, I found that I was always able to “feel” more then what I was actually seeing. For example, I was really good at helping students make adjustments during classes to better their poses and postures.
So I knew whatever I decided to do for a career, it was going to be hands-on.
My love for being at the barn while wanting to graduate up from being a typical stable-hand plus having a really good ‘feel’ in my hands had me doing some math and I decided to go for equine bodywork.
I ordered Jim Masterson’s book online and took the soonest course I could find.
I felt assured I was on the right career path. Helping as many horses as I could through feel and intuition seemed like my cup of tea.
I am passionate about effectively helping as many horses as I can and along the way, I discovered I enjoy helping owners understand more about what their horse maybe trying to express.
Destiny Nugent
Master’s level Social Work Intern
Destiny has always wanted to help others, she especially wants to focus on the trauma informed care within the youth population. She recently graduated from Purdue University-Northwest with her Bachelor’s degree in Social Work. Currently she is working on her Masters Degree at Denver University Online Program. Destiny is working to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who specializes in Equine Psychotherapy.
Get in Touch
Phone: (219) 207-7222
Email: info@anamcarastables.org
Address: 4298 E 1000 North, La Porte, IN 46350
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