Office Closed   August 1

Regular Sessions Resume September 12, 2022

All Programs are Open for Registration

Please visit our website for more information and to register

We would like to send a out a big thank you to the community members of the Grande Prairie area for coming out to enjoy the day at PARDS Carnival. We could not have done it without our fabulous volunteers and very generous sponsors and supporters. Thank you!

The Slim Allen Award of Excellence is presented each year by Slim’s family in conjunction with our Annual Fund Ride. Slim was one of the founding members of PARDS and stayed connected with us in some form throughout our history. Before Slim passed away, he reached out to PARDS with the idea of the award which he wanted to be presented to someone that made an exceptional contribution to PARDS in any capacity. Over the years, we have had the honour of presenting the award to riders, volunteers, long-time advocates and even staff members. Slim’s life and legacy reflects his belief that horses are healing and that everyone deserves an opportunity to be active and engaged in whatever they are passionate about. PARDS was so fortunate to have had Slim as a foundational member of the organization.

Due to Covid we  were unable to present this award in the  appropriate year.

We have all been through a trying year and keeping employees working and busy can be a difficult task at times. Long time PARDS supporter Rene Blais, owner of RB Oilfield Hauling Inc. is one such business. Rene can be seen at our Annual Dine and Dance each year and has helped out in many ways over the years. Just this past year it began with Rene and his crew have helped hauling and placing our horse shelters last February and then the pandemic hit. Work for many slowed and Rene made use of his crew, keeping them employed, much to PARDS advantage come spring. He called and asked if there were jobs that could be done. The list started, we were so happy!! Over the next couple of months when they had the time in between jobs, fences were mended, pens were cleared of deadfall, our trails were cleared of debris and graded, pens were scraped and the crew was open to anything we asked of them. We are very thankful for the help and as some of the guys shared they couldn't think of a better way to spend the day “working”!

We are so pleased to present the Slim Allen Award for 2021 to Christina Balcom. Christina has been a member of our Board of Directors since 2008 and moved into the Board Chairperson position in 2016 where she has spent her time and effort in strengthening our Governance Board structure including policy development, policy review, meeting procedures and developing committees of the Board.

Christina’s passion for PARDS and belief in the value of the organization has kept her motivated and provided guidance and direction for all those she leads on the Board. She has done an excellent job of representing PARDS, our values and our impact throughout the community.

We value all Christina has provided in her time with PARDS and her ongoing commitment to sharing her gifts, talents and skills with all of us. Thank you for your leadership, Christina! We all appreciate you.

Nancy Ingram has been a long time PARDS volunteer, who started her journey with PARDS back at our old facility. She has been immeasurable in our lessons in the amount of time that she’s been able to give supporting our riders and their different needs.

Nancy stepped up to help us develop some programs, utilizing her experience and expertise as a retired schoolteacher. This past spring, we worked with the Aboriginal Head Start Program through the Grande Prairie Friendship Centre. Nancy took on a lead role running the Critter Connections portion of that program, working with the kids and developing their literacy skills. She developed worksheets and resources at home always bringing new and refreshing ideas to the team. 

Nancy doesn’t do anything halfway for us, she always goes above and beyond. When Nancy commits to something, she does it all the way and we know we can rely on her without any doubt. When we find ourselves short handed and need a volunteer to cover a role in lessons, her name is usually the first one offering to help. At our events we see her offering her time and donations of glitter tattoos, knowing how much the children enjoy them 

When we think of Nancy and what it means to embody the spirit of PARDS as a volunteer, we couldn’t think of anyone more deserving for the Slim Allen Award.