The United States Pony Clubs, Inc.

The Kentucky Horse Park, 4041 Iron Works Parkway, Lexington, KY 40511

859/254-7669 (PONY)   Fax 859/233-4652   email: uspc@ponyclub.org

News Release

Contact: Mary Robertson Pierson

859/254-7669

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

The United States Pony Clubs, Inc.

2009 Academy of Achievement Inductees

LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY: At the Annual Meeting and Convention of The United States Pony Clubs, Inc., in Greenville, South Carolina, January 22-25, 2009, five individuals were inducted into the Academy of Achievement. The USPC Academy of Achievement was created to honor annually up to 10 USPC alumni who have attained outstanding achievements in their chosen fields after leaving Pony Club. The honorees this year were selected from a distinguished group of nominees. They bring a wide variety of skills and experiences as they participate in the activities of the National Youth Congress. The following recipients were recognized at the January 23rd Honors Banquet:

Holiday W. Banta, J.D.,is a graduate H-A from the Tennessee Valley Pony Club in the MidSouth Region. She earned at B.A. in Biology from Indiana University and J.D. from Vanderbilt University.

Currently, Holly is a registered Patent Attorney and partner in Indiana's oldest and largest patent and trademark law firm, Woodard, Emhardt, Moiarty, McNett & Henry, LLP in Indianapolis. She is chair of the firm's Trial Practice Group and specializes in litigation, representing clients in the enforcement and defense of patent, trademark and other intellectual property actions. In 2000, she was inducted into the U.S. Supreme Court Bar by then Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist.

Also, Holly coaches members of the White River Valley PC and judges horse management for the Heartland region. She is a member of the Traders Point Hunt Charity Show, and is finishing a term as president of the Indiana Eventing Association.

James M. Hamilton, DVM, is a graduate of the Miami Valley Pony Club in the MidSouth Region.  He earned his bachelor's degree at The Ohio State University and doctorate from the University of Georgia, College of Veterinary Medicine.

Currently, Jim is a partner at Southern Pines Equine Associates in Sandhills, NC. The practice provides complete medical and surgery services to the rapidly growing horse community in southern North Carolina.

Dr. Hamilton is the author of "Equine Emergencies on the Road" and is involved with the American Veterinary Medical Association's Disaster Response Program and has provided disaster response services to areas affected by Hurricane Katrina and the World Trade Center. His work with the North Carolina Veterinary Medical Association to organize a disaster plan, earned Jim the "Veterinarian of the Year Award" in 1998.

Caroline McCabe, Psy.D. is a graduate B from the Greenwich Pony Club in the Metropolitan Region. She attended Tulane University where she participated in Semester at Sea and with the National Outdoor Leadership School. She earned her MA in Counseling Psychology from Boston College and her Doctor of Psychology from the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology and completed post doctoral training at Harvard Medical School.

Caroline is energized by the process of identifying people-related solutions to business challenges and she focuses on aligning and maximizing talent around key business imperatives and strengthening the effectiveness of executive teams for clients, which have included Fortune 100 companies.

Currently, Caroline is horseless, but spends her free time practicing vinyasa yoga, traveling and sailing.

John Staples is a graduate B from the Meadowlark Pony Club in the Cimarron Region. He followed his Pony Club education by studying engineering at the University of Kansas, which he uses in his hobby of designing and building cross-country fences.

While at the University of Kansas, John competed at the highest level of eventing. He won the 1986 North American Young Riders Championship and the following year placed 5th at the Rolex Kentucky CCI***. He was named as alternate to the 1988 US Olympic Eventing Team and was long listed for the 1992 and 1996 teams.

John returned to Wichita to help his father with the family business, and has since returned to training horses full time in Wichita.

Kate Sweeney is a graduate B from the Wayne-DuPage Hunt Pony Club in the North Central Prairie Region. She took a break from horses to earn her BA at Colorado College, then returned to horses before earning her MS in Science Journalism from Boston University and completed graduate classes in Deep Ocean Engineering at M.I.T.

Kate has traveled all over the world, witnessing religious pain rituals in the highlands of Asia and submarine missions in the Atlantic. She has since settled down as the Supervising Producer of the Smithsonian Channel, overseeing the production of original programs from concept to broadcast, and managing multiple producers, writers, editors and production crews.

The closest Kate has recently gotten to riding a horse was a pack mule loaded down with film and equipment cases, but the experience was enough to make Kate think of horses coming back into her life in the near future.

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