Local Puslinch Resident Presented Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award

On Saturday, November 7, 2015, Their Excellencies the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, and Mrs. Sharon Johnston participated in the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association’s (CanTRA) 35th anniversary celebration at the Royal Winter Fair. Her Excellency delivered brief remarks and His Excellency presented two CanTRA volunteers with the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award. The award recipients were Ann Caine of Puslinch, Ontario and Eliane Trempe of Sorel-Tracy, Quebec.

Through the healing power of horses, Ann Caine turned personal tragedy into a world of possibilities, which has had a great impact on therapeutic riding in Canada and around the world. As a founding member of the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association in Canada (CanTRA) and the Ontario Therapeutic Riding Association, she led and supported the incorporation of medical professionals in therapeutic riding programs, and played an important role in developing para-equestrian sport at the recreational and Paralympic levels.

Eliane Trempe was the force behind the development of therapeutic riding in the province of Quebec. She founded the Fédération québécoise d’équitation thérapeutique (FQET) in 2000, and joined the CanTRA board in 2005, with which she continues to serve. She has initiated the FQET membership eligibility rule that requires member centres to also be CanTRA-accredited, as this field is not protected by federal or provincial government regulations.

The Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association (CanTRA) empowers children and adults with disabilities through the use of the horse. For more information please visit: www.cantra.ca

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Photo Credit: Sgt Ronald Duchesne, Rideau Hall
©Her Majesty The Queen in Right of Canada represented by the Office of the Secretary to the Governor General, 2015

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For more information, please contact: Ann Caine, CanTRA Advisory Council, 519-829-8182 or [email protected]