SAIN's Board of Directors

Samantha has worked in marketing for her entire career, currently as an independent consultant with clients in food and agriculture. She has served as Marketing Coordinator prior to adding the Chair role and has also been on the board of several other organizations. She is a 2021 graduate of Leadership Skagit. A lifelong animal lover, she has never owned horses and has been at best an infrequent rider, but is nonetheless captivated by their grace and dignity. She moved to Skagit County in Spring 2018 and lives in Mount Vernon with her husband, Michael, and their rescue dogs, Jet and Omar.

Cassandra Carr has loved animals, especially horses, since before she could walk. A Northwest Washington native, she got her first pony when she was only two-and-a-half years old, though horses left her life when she was 10. In 2007, while on vacation in Oregon, an impromptu beach trail ride brought horses back into her life. Since then, she has enjoyed dressage, jumping, polo, trail riding, and starting two young horses of her own using natural horsemanship techniques. Most importantly, a lifelong dream of being able to help neglected horses finally came true. Cassandra and her husband, their five horses (two of which she adopted from SAIN), three cats, a dog, and a large flock of laying hens all now live on a small horse farm in tulip country, where she also cares for a varying number of boarded horses and fosters and rehabilitates horses for SAIN.

A Northwest Washington native, Ragina has been riding and enjoying horses for decades. She’s dabbled in several performance disciplines including reining, hunt seat, jumping and lower level dressage, but now enjoys the slower pace of western pleasure with her quarter horse mare, Mango. Professionally, Ragina has worked in environmental conservation, the arts, and now public health as a leader, fundraiser and administrator. She believes in SAIN’s mission and has a goal of helping neglected, abused or just unhappy horses however she can. Ragina and her husband built their own home and “pony palace” in the Arlington area, and live there happily with their fur babies.

Janette's lifelong love of animals began while growing up on Vashon Island with a variety of pets, livestock and assorted strays that her father brought home. Her love affair with horses began in earnest in her mid-twenties when she acquired Dusty, a young Arabian/Quarter Horse. In 2013, after working for 29 years as a graphic artist and manager, she was able to devote herself full time to learning about, working with, and improving the lives of horses, and became certified in equine massage in 2015. When not riding the trails , she enjoys spending time with her teenage son Nathan, and assorted dogs, cats, horses, ducks, and chickens at her small acreage in Stanwood.

Jessica was born and raised in the Skagit Valley and has been in the banking industry most of her career. During the day she manages a local branch of Banner Bank and most recently graduated Leadership Skagit class of 2021 and wanted more opportunities to get involved in the community with a local organization. She does not have horses of her own but both Jessica and her husband grew up around ranching families that exposed them to horses, cows, bulls, and many other animals. Jessica currently lives in Mount Vernon with her husband and their sons and the two animals that take over the house, Bullet a Heeler mix, and the newest member Chief the Papillion.

Janiece originally connected with SAIN as a foster home, providing in-depth TLC for a variety of SAIN horses. Her love of horses began with a white pony named Silver. Summers were spent in Ellensburg with her grandmother, showing horses in the county fair and riding at every opportunity. As an adult, she dabbled in everything from eventing to cattle roundups and horseback search and rescue. Although she currently doesn't have a horse of her own, she's passionate about supporting the SAIN mission to help animals in need. Janiece also volunteers as a K9 Search and Rescue handler with her dog, Parker and serves as the President for Northwest Disaster Search Dogs. She is the President and founding board member for Cascadia Search Dogs, which provides training and educational opportunities for volunteer K9 handlers. 

The horse love bug is in Nicole's DNA. Her mom owned horses as a kid and spent many years participating in 4H & countless horse shows. Being a military child, having a horse of her own was not possible. However her parents gave her the next best thing: riding lessons! She fell in love with these beautiful creatures and enjoyed several years in 4H as well as showing at the county fair. Her daughter Madison brought Nicole back into the horse world several years ago after asking repeatedly for riding lessons. Nicole was gifted her first horse, Kali, two years ago as a birthday gift. Little did Nicole know just how much Kali would change her life and all the amazing people that she would meet because of her. A Skagit Valley resident for more than 14 years, Nicole is married to her high school sweetheart and together they have two kids plus their beloved pups, Enzo their golden retriever & Axel their rescue pup.

Teri started life as a a Skagit Valley native, in a small house, with a small yard, in a housing development and dreamed of horses. At 11, she found a friend with a field and convinced her parents to let her buy a horse with saved strawberry picking money. The field was close enough to home to make it there and back after her parents went to bed, and get both a good ride in and a little bit of sleep before morning. The rest of her life has always included the company of at least one horse and usually a full complement of other furry family members. Teri and her then boyfriend bought a basket-case, ten acre farm near Clear Lake in 2005. They finished the three year renovation in 2017. The farm has the five stall Equine Shrine and Dog Palace, some number of wise dogs, a vacation rental, a barn cat that chases the dogs and even a house for Teri and her now husband. Teri is a mother and grandmother and works for Marathon Oil. She enjoys Hiking, RV trekking, volunteering for SAIN, and being home, in her sanctuary, in the company of her Friesian horses and golden retrievers.