Partners Therapeutic Horsemanship Staff
Karen Crampton
Executive Director
PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor
​Karen is a co-founder and Executive Director of Partners Therapeutic Horsemanship. She became a PATH certified therapeutic riding instructor in 2001 after obtaining a degree from SDSU and a 25-year career in Graphic Design. She also owns and runs a commercial and residential property family enterprise. She has ridden for over 35 years in various disciplines, including dressage, jumping, trail, and polo. A former Helix High School band mom/board president, she has two grown, married children, and four grandchildren.
Laura Barton
Operations Manager
PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor
Laura was raised in Ohio riding hunter/jumper and currently enjoys trail riding. She holds an economics degree from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN, and a law degree from UVA in Charlottesville, VA. After practicing law for ten years, she raised four kids and became a CASA (court-appointed special advocate for foster youth) volunteer. She began volunteering at a therapeutic riding facility in Bonita in 2013 and in 2015, mentored with Karen Crampton and became a PATH Certified Instructor with Partners. She is always looking for more ways to help the program, and to continue working with challenged individuals.
Bobbi Buettgenbach
Business Manager, Equine Manager
​​Bobbi, originally from the Minneapolis area, and a graduate of the University of Minnesota, retired after 35 years of intensive care nursing with VA Hospitals, in Chicago, Minneapolis, and San Diego. She held administrative responsibilities for much of that time. Bobbi is a former competitor on the A show hunter/jumper circuit and has been involved with therapeutic riding since 2002. She is one of the original staff of Partners. Bobbi is a past president of the Lakeside Chamber of Commerce. She has a dog named Gracie.
Emily Pierce
Program Manager
PATH Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor
PATH Certificated EAL Facilitator
​Emily joined the Partners team in 2017 as a recent SDSU graduate. Her journey at Partners began as a part-time lesson assistant and Instructor while completing her post-graduate studies, then quickly became a long-term passion for Equine-Assisted Services (EAS). In 2021, Emily made a career change to join the Partners team full-time. She now serves as Program Manager, PATH CTRI Instructor and Partners’ first EAL (Equine Assisted Learning) Facilitator. Working in EAS has granted Emily the unique opportunity to combine a lifelong love of horses with her personal passions for education and learning. She is driven by the meaningful work of assisting all types of clients in meeting their personal goals, in ways which impact them both on and off the ranch. Emily looks forward to a long career in the EAS industry and hopes to continue serving as an impactful part of the Partners community for many years to come.
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Kate Hall
Therapeutic Riding Instructor
Intake Coordinator
Kate joined the Partners family in summer, 2025 as a therapeutic riding instructor, and is working on her PATH certification. She has a lifelong love for horses, and enjoys riding Western Trail recreationally. Kate has a long history of working with children, including nature programming for kids and families, leadership adventures for at-risk youth, and raising her own children with the challenges of special needs. Growing up with family members with special needs and being a parent of three wonderful children and helping them overcome learning disabilities contributed to her interest in therapeutic horsemanship. For Kate, Partners is a unique opportunity to combine the connection with horses with the desire to serve the community and share the joy of horsemanship with children in a meaningful way.
Finn Moore
Therapeutic Riding Instructor
Finn joined the Partners' staff in September, 2025 as a therapeutic riding instructor with over two years of teaching experience. They are currently working toward their PATH certification. Finn attended Cal State Fullerton in the theatre department, in addition to spending time working in Entertainment at the Disneyland Resort. During college, they took up riding hunter jumper, and horses quickly became a passion. They also have experience in barrel racing, western pleasure, and ranch trail. Finn is eager to learn, and to serve the community through continued work in equine assisted services.