Meet Our Board and Staff
Director
Carter graduated from the College of William and Mary with a degree in Sociology and a minor in English. Upon graduating, she worked as a business consultant in the telecom field and eventually landed on a training and documentation team. This introduction to employee development would be the start of a 25-year Training and Organizational Development career of which she managed for several large Richmond-based companies. Today she is enjoying a new career in insurance, having most recently worked as a wholesale broker in the cyber line of business. Carter spends her free time managing her farm in Ashland, where she has five horses and her pride and joy – her eight dachshunds. She foxhunts across Virginia and Maryland and is raising a young horse who will eventually compete in hunter competitions.
Director
Shannon obtained a bachelor’s degree in animal science and an MBA from Oklahoma State University. Shannon has spent the last 18+ years working in the financial services industry with a focus on investment operations and compliance. She grew up in a horse-focused family and started riding at an early age. The love of horses inherited from her family led her to gain experience in multiple facets of the industry including thoroughbred racing and breeding. Shannon spends her free time with her two retired hunters and her three rescue beagles.
Director
Dr. Stanford has worked as an equine veterinarian in Central Virginia for 37 years. The majority of that time was working at Woodside Equine Clinic in Ashland VA as a reproduction specialist as well as a general practitioner. Last summer he “retired” from private practice and is now the Lead Veterinarian for the Virginia Racing Commission. When Dr. Stanford retired, his assistant for the last 7 years, Kelsey Edwards, also moved on to become the program manager for the James River Horse Foundation. Through this connection Dr. Stanford learned about the foundation and it was a natural fit to become a Director. As a Director Dr. Stanford hopes to use his equine veterinary experience and connections to assist in the management and growth of the program so that more horses and humans can grow in new careers and connections.
Program Manager
Kelsey Edwards is the program manager for the James River Horse Foundation program operating at the State Farm Work Center. Kelsey worked for 7 years at Woodside Equine Clinic as a Team Leader and as Equine Veterinary Assistant to Dr. David Stanford. Dr. Stanford has recently retired, and Kelsey became very interested in our program position. Originally from Washington (State), she received her B.S. in Biology from Randolph-Macon College in Ashland. After college she worked for Ashland Veterinary Hospital for 3 years before moving on to Woodside.
Operations Administrator
e Operations Administrator oversees various aspects of our organization’s programs and operations including the TAA (Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance) grants, sponsorship management, marketing and collaboration with the Program Manager on working with the Department of Corrections (DOC). CJ is the past program manager for the James River Horse Foundation and an experienced equine professional with an extensive background in barn management and horse training. A native of Zimbabwe, CJ worked with horses in many parts of the United States and Europe before settling in Richmond, VA.
Bookkeeper
Lisa is a longtime resident of Goochland County. A lifetime love for all creatures great and small started at an early age when she began riding and showing her first pony. After a 17 year career in the financial industry, Lisa spent 7 years working for a local thoroughbred race horse breeder learning about the thoroughbred breeding business and the racing industry. She served as Treasurer on the James River Second Chances board from 2012 to 2015.