Meet Our Team
Melanie Roeder
Program Director | Head Trainer
Melanie fell in love with horses and riding at the age of nine and spent her junior years competing on the east coast in the hunters, jumpers, and 3’6 equitation classes, including shows at Old Salem Farm, Ox Ridge Hunt Club, and Maclay Regionals.
After years of teaching hunter/jumper lessons, Melanie became a Path International registered instructor and began a career in therapeutic horseback riding. From 2009 to 2012, she worked at Freedom Woods Farm in Morton Grove, IL teaching both therapeutic riding and traditional hunter/jumper lessons. In 2012, Melanie moved to Tucson, AZ to work at Therapeutic Riding of Tucson (TROT) as the Equine Training Coordinator and then as Program Director. In 2017, she received her Path International Advanced Certification. In 2018, Melanie co-founded Steady Strides Riding Center with the goal of creating a riding facility where both adaptive and traditional riders could enjoy the benefits of riding and horses.
Melanie enjoys tailoring lessons to individual students' learning styles and using creative problem solving to help riders overcome challenges and achieve goals.
Lauren Schroeder
Executive Director | Trainer
At the age of nine, Lauren began her relationship with horses as a very timid summer camp rider in Davis, California. Growing up with dyslexia, she began to realize that as her equestrian skills grew so did her confidence both in the barn and in the classroom. Lauren developed her skills as a hunter/jumper and equitation rider and went on to ride and compete for the St. Andrews Presbyterian College equestrian team at rated shows across the southeast.
After college, Lauren spent several years teaching riding lessons and retraining off the track thoroughbreds. She took a ten-year hiatus from horses to serve as a US Peace Corps health volunteer in Zambia for four years, obtain a master’s degree in public health from the University of Arizona, and work in health and human service nonprofits in Zambia, California, and Arizona. In 2014, Lauren began volunteering at a therapeutic riding center and in April 2016, received her certification as a PATH Intl. registered therapeutic riding instructor.
At Steady Strides, Lauren now finds all her professional endeavors united around a powerful mission.
Taylor Eason
Barn Assistant
Taylor has lived in Tucson since 2006 and worked jobs that were not aligned with his true self. In the beginning of 2018, Taylor began volunteering with horses and in July of 2018, Taylor began his employment at SSRC. Working at SSRC is by far the best job Taylor has ever had. He enjoys caring for the horses and having the opportunity to learn how to ride.
Jessica Little
Barn Assistant
A Tucson native who started riding at eight years old, Jessica was an original barn staff member at Steady Strides in 2017. After not riding for many years, she started taking hunter/jumper lessons and purchased her horse, AJ, at Steady Strides. Jessica now works at Pima County and works at the barn on the weekends. She loves the community atmosphere and looks forward to the time she gets to spend working and riding at the barn.
Kacey Quinnan
Barn Assistant
Kacey’s love of horses started at a very early age. She grew up trail riding through the desert, and in her teenage years participated in local 4-H horse camps and competed in barrel races and gymkhanas. She then branched out into western/ranch horse shows and cowboy mounted shooting. She has been a student of natural horsemanship techniques for years and has a keen interest in liberty work. Kacey is currently a student at the University of Arizona pursuing a degree in psychology and is the proud owner of an off the track thoroughbred named Falcon. She is thrilled to be a part of the Steady Strides team and is excited about expanding her knowledge of the English disciplines. Her goals include competing in hunter/jumper and becoming a certified therapeutic riding instructor.
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