Equestrian Director, Mary Paige Kowalski

As a Certified Instructor with Certified Horsemanship Association (CHA), Mary Paige’s first and foremost concern is teaching equestrian skills in the safest environment possible. Majoring in Equine Business at Clemson University, Mary Paige took classes in breaking and training, nutrition, anatomy and physiology, as well as some elementary and agricultural education classes to help her focus on skills for teaching children. Growing up in Cameron, South Carolina, Mary Paige spent every summer going to camp, starting in 2nd grade up through her senior year of high school. She had her first pony ride at a zoo in Canada when she was five and was hooked! She rode on the PSJ show circuit growing up doing the hunters and the equitation. She also rode at Clemson University on their Equestrian team, where she served as team President. She loves to increase her equine knowledge with clinics in all different styles of riding and training such as western dressage, calf roping, pole bending/barrel racing and even a polo class. She is a Facility Certifier and is the Regional Director for CHA’s Region 6 (including 6 New England states and 3 Canadian provinces). As a facility accreditor she keeps up with current safety standards and options for riding facilities that are in the forefront of the industry by attending the Equine Affaire in West Springfield, MA, the CHA International Conference each year, and recently worked the World Equestrian Games in Tryon, NC.

Mary Paige conveniently lives just 10 miles from camp and loves spending her summer at Kippewa together with her daughter, Elizabeth, her son, AJ and a full team of amazing horses and staff.

MEeT THE HORSES

Mary Paige is amazing. She makes the program so empowering for all of us and creates a real “community within a community” at the barn.

Equestrian Academy Counselors

Our Equestrian Academy counselors are highly qualified, experienced, and dedicated staff. From college riders and experienced competitors to knowledgeable instructors and life-long horsewomen, they not only love horses and riding, they also have a passion for teaching and working with our campers in the bunk setting. They help girls learn at their own pace. Instructors are trained with CHA (Certified Horsemanship Association) standards and consistently demonstrate their commitment to meeting the varied needs of each rider by getting to know the campers on an individual basis.

While most of the counselors are equestrian specialists, we also hire lifeguards and general counselors to focus on the “camp” side of our campers’ experience.

The teachers are excellent because they care for the horses and the riders so much.