Therapy, Education and Recreation in a farm setting...
OUR TEAM
“It is literally true that you can succeed best and quickest by helping others to succeed...”
—Napoleon Hill
“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.”
—Andrew Carnegie
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I will learn.”
—Benjamin Franklin
Karen van der Zalm
Executive Director
Karen has always had a real passion for horses and feels so blessed by all the joys they have brought into her life and the lives of those she has taught. She has been working with horses in the fields of therapy, education and recreation for over 20 years, and there is no other place she would rather be than on the farm! Karen became involved with I CAN-T.E.R. during its foundational years in the early 1990’s where she was instrumental in helping to establish riding programs as well as integrated summer day camps for children with special needs.
Karen is a certified Horse Groom with the Ontario College of Trades and is the head instructor of the Agricultural Apprenticeship Horse Groom - 600H Program offered at I CAN -T.E.R. Karen also holds an Honors Degree in Physical Education from Brock University with a specialization in Adaptive Recreation & Sport. In addition, she has earned her Educational Assistant Special Needs Support Diploma from Niagara College.
Goals
Karen's future goals are to:
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help expand I CAN -T.E.R.’s agricultural-based programs for therapy, education and recreational purposes.
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provide more skills training for employment opportunities to those interested in experiencing all the benefits agriculture offers.
"Nature does not hurry, yet everything gets accomplished."
—Lao Tzu
Interests
When Karen is not working on farms in the Niagara Region, much of her time is spent at home caring for her herd of boys and attending all their sporting events.
Some of Karen’s greatest pleasures and pastimes are spent outdoors gardening and enjoying nature. Karen’s unique combination of education, work ethic and life experiences enables her to provide a high standard and successful program delivery at I CAN -T.E.R.