The Team

Combate

A Polo Pony, 19 years old, a current valuable member of the Cornell Polo Team. Cornell has graciously lent her to us for vocational and riding training with our Special Olympic athletes.

Jada

Jada joined our team July 2023, courtesy of the Cornell Polo Team. Jade is a retired polo pony who played for many years in a well known team in Connecticut. She is very gentle, enjoys people, and her new friend Buddy. Her full name is Carcajada, which means “burst of laughter”.

Buddy

A beloved, retired former barrel racer donated by the Cornell University Equestrian Team. He needed a home and a new job, and he's found that at Stablework. Buddy is so gentle, he's everyone's buddy. His racing name was "Cold Frosty One."

Winston, Skeddadle, and Resi

Our Nigerian Dwarf Goats with us since April 2022.

They love the sun, to climb and play with people!

Although we don’t know if Combate and Jada were born in Argentina, they have Spanish names for a reason. Argentina is one of the most popular exporters of the Argentine Polo Pony. These are a unique mix of the Argentine Criollo and Thoroughbred horse breeds. The Argentine Polo Pony is highly sought after because of its speed, stamina, endurance, but also calm and obedient nature. They are very sensitive to the rider’s signals and commands. We are lucky to have Combate and Jada as part of our programs. Thank you Cornell Polo!

Lisa Krizman, President, Director, and Founder

Lisa is a former Special Education attorney, regionally recognized for excellence and a former Assistant General Counsel for a major international corporation. She also holds an MSW from Columbia University and a B.S. in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University. Lisa has significant experience with individuals with disabilities, and was a former volunteer with the Court- Appointed Special Advocates for Foster Children (CASA), the NYC chapter of the National Alliance for Mental Illness and the ASPCA. In addition to founding Stablework, Lisa is of counsel to the law firm of Kenney Shelton Liptak Nowak, LLP. She lives in Newfield, NY.

Susan Miron Schwartz, Chair of the Board of Directors, Vice-President and

Director of Development

Susan has a private practice in occupational therapy evaluations. Susan holds a B.S. in Occupational Therapy, from The University of Pennsylvania, an MS in Educational Psychology in Measurement and Evaluation, from NYU, and a Teacher Supervision and Administration certificate, Hunter College. Susan's work has been in both non profit and home/community settings including Rusk Institute, NYU Medical Center, working with adults with disabilities. She is currently a Board Member with the Alcott Montessori School. She has extensive experience in program development and staff trainings. Susan lives in Westchester, NY.

Michelle Decker, Secretary, Director and Business Manager

Michelle is currently involved in her Special Education Consulting practice; Member of New York State Committee on Disabilities; Certified Special Education Advocate by the Council of Parent Advocates and Attorneys; Facilitator of Mental Health Support Group. Michelle holds a B.S. in Finance/Marketing from Binghamton University. Michelle lives in Westchester, NY.

Ruth Starer, Director

Ruth is currently the CEO/Co-Founder of Copycats Second Avenue Corporation, a printing, signage and graphics corporation. As part of her work there, she has worked with various NYC agencies to provide employment and training to individuals with disabilities. Ruth holds a B.A. in Anthropology from SUNY at Buffalo and an MSW from Adelphi University. She is an active volunteer with conservation and community groups. Ruth lives in NYC.

STAFF

Lisa, Site Supervisor

Lisa, founder and a director of the Stablework program, directly supervises every session, collaborating with different agencies to tailor the program to the participants. This assures the quality and consistency of the programs delivered, and that they are responsive to the changing needs of the individuals.

Susan, Occupational Therapist

In addition to being Chair of the Stablework Board of Directors, Susan is a highly experienced occupational therapist. She brings her expertise to the curriculum of the Stablework programs and monitors our participants' progress.

Bob, Director of Projects

We are lucky to have Bob do our "Building with Bob" Stablework sessions in the workshop. Bob was the Senior Vice President for Jones Lang LaSalle and Executive Project manager for the renovation of the Empire State Building Observatory in New York City. At Stablework, he volunteers his time to teach to Stablework participants basic woodworking, repair, painting, and carpentry skills.

Ariana, Communications Design Intern

We are excited that Ariana has joined STABLEWORK as a Communications Designer. She formerly worked with us as Intern from New York City College of Technology. She was so good we had to hire her.

“Designing and problem-solving brings me joy and I aspire to be a creative director one day.”

We are so happy to have Ariana be part of the STABLEWORK team

Joseph, Video Editing Intern

We are excited that Joseph joins our team for his summer internship. He has been learning a variety of skills with Tech Kids Unlimited (TKU) since 2017. At Stablework, he’ll be doing what he likes best, video editing.

Joseph enjoys video games “I love the competitive aspect of them all” and he is pretty good at,

chess and basketball.

Joseph “definitely wants to be a Video Editor at some point, that's mainly why I was so eager about this opportunity!”

We are happy to have Joseph to be part of the Stablework team!

Pi, former Stable Hand and Assistant Job Trainer

Pi, in addition to his job as assistant job trainer, he filled a role of our much-needed Stable Hand taking care of our horses and goats. Pi grew up in Ithaca and in his spare time enjoys a broad variety of interests. He went through our Community Classes and we saw how good he was and is with our horses. You can see how he and Buddy have a special thing going.

VOLUNTEER

We are excited that Elliot is volunteering his time to help keep our barn, grounds, and animals in tip top shape. Elliot is a student at Ithaca High School and very interested in biology. He also excels as a musician.

Thank you Elliot for joining our team.

Engels Certified Public Accounting

Welcome Engels Certified Public Accounting of Lansing, New York, to assist with our financial management as we grow.