ESB therapy: About me

I was born in Cyprus as my father was in the British Navy.

We moved back to the UK when I was 8 months old. I started riding ponies before I could walk because that is what you do when you're in England.

We immigrated to Australia when I was 8 years old and I continued riding and then competing in eventing (horse trials).

I moved around a bit and I went to eight different schools. Being English and interested in horses made me a target for being bullied at school which I found very difficult. I was the eldest and I don't think my parents were truly aware of just how difficult it was for me.

I became a registered nurse after school, training at Bethesda (now the Epworth), then Warrnambool and Frankston Hospitals. I worked in all health departments, especially the operating theatre and working as a volunteer for Hospice Care and with disability care on the Mornington Peninsula.

In 1984 I was invited to compete in an Australian team in Germany. Following the competition (which we won!) I travelled around Europe for six months.

Upon my return, I declared to my parents that I was leaving nursing to study Horse Management full time for two years at Glenorminston Ag College. Needless to say, they were horrified!

I then established the Equine Sports Breeding (ESB) stud to produce world class eventing horses.

You can read more about the 400 ESB horses HERE.

I am passionate about increasing the appreciation and awareness about the Australian Horse Industry which led me to collate and publish the first ever database of the industry (the A-Z Horse Industry Directory). I then became the first Event Director of Equitana held in the MECC in November 1999.