Meet the Board of Directors

Helena Lulay

Board Chair

Helena works in Business Development for OCHIN, a nonprofit leader in health care innovation and a trusted partner to a growing national provider network. Helena retired from Sears Holdings after…

Susan Sjordal

Treasurer

Susan was retiring and wanted to volunteer somewhere where she could work with individuals with disabilities and be outside. She mentioned this to a friend she met on the golf…

Melody Finn

Secretary

Melody's family was introduced to Forward Stride the day her daughter took her first ride on a horse during an outing to the barn with her Girl Scout troop back…

Mike Feves

Michael Feves earned a BA degree in Physics from Reed College in 1973 and a PhD in Geophysics from MIT in 1977. In 1984, after working in the petroleum and…

Kara Martin-Beijer

James Anderson

Bio coming soon!

John Spence

John was born on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in Montana. He has over 50 years of experience as a caseworker, program director, teacher, and trainer. At Fort Belknap, he…

Dr. Barb Crabbe

Dr. Crabbe spent 30 years as a private practitioner and the owner of Pacific Crest Sporthorse, a 3-doctor general equine practice in Oregon, where she had a special interest in…

Rhonda Kittredge

Patricia Phillips

Patricia retired in 2024 after a long and successful career in the tech industry, including 27 years working at Intel. She has held many roles including engineering, customer-facing and project…

Robin Adams

Treasurer

Rena Snyder

Secretary

Robin Cook

Melody Finn

Helena Lulay

Helena works in Business Development for OCHIN, a nonprofit leader in health care innovation and a trusted partner to a growing national provider network. Helena retired from Sears Holdings after 40 years of Service. She served in many leadership roles including Sales, Operations, Risk Management, Loss Prevention, and Vendor Relations. She has previous non-profit board experience with Wilsonville High School’s Booster Club, she served as Board President for 3 years. Currently, she is a board member for Self Determination Resources Inc. (SDRI). SDRI is a “full service” brokerage organization designed to assist individuals with developmental disabilities achieve the supports they need by providing an array of services.

She has two children who have been clients of Forward Stride since it was founded in 2003. Forward Stride has enhanced her children’s quality of life with the staff and services they provide. Forward Stride is vital to our community and the clients they serve and it is a pleasure for her to be part of it.

Susan Sjordal

Susan was retiring and wanted to volunteer somewhere where she could work with individuals with disabilities and be outside. She mentioned this to a friend she met on the golf course, Rena Snyder, and the rest they say is history. Susan began volunteering at Forward Stride in 2014 as a sidewalker/header in the Rehabilitation Services Program and helping out with horse care.
Susan joined the board in 2018. She had a long career in public service with the State of Oregon with positions in management, training, adjudication, operations and policy analysis that she believes will be useful as a member of the board.

Melody Finn

Melody’s family was introduced to Forward Stride the day her daughter took her first ride on a horse during an outing to the barn with her Girl Scout troop back in 2008. She fell in love on the spot! Eventuallym Melody bought her own horse – Freckles – a now retired member of the Forward Stride herd.

Melody is a product deployment and customer service manager with Sodexo – Quality of Life Services. Melody’s membership on the board offers her a way to give back to the organization that has given her family so many opportunities. Over the past 7 years all four members of her family have volunteered or spent time at the barn in one way or another – through the many farm chores for the horses to participating in riding lessons. Melody is grateful for the instructors and staff that support clients participating in many different areas with equestrian activities and volunteering events. Melody believes Forward Stride brings out the best in all of us.

Mike Feves

Michael Feves earned a BA degree in Physics from Reed College in 1973 and a PhD in Geophysics from MIT in 1977. In 1984, after working in the petroleum and civil engineering industries and teaching at the University of Portland and Portland State University, he established a consulting practice that specializes in geophysics, rock mechanics and vibration analysis. Earth Dynamics LLC has gained a reputation throughout the United States for using innovative approaches to complete challenging projects on time and within budget.

In addition to his Geophysical activities, Dr. Feves established a property investment and management company, Circum Pacific Properties, in 1982. The company focuses on providing work force housing in the Portland metropolitan area.

Dr. Feves has served on the board of several non-profit organizations. Currently he is the Vice President in charge of facilities at Cedar Sinai Park, and he is a board member of Forward Stride. Cedar Sinai Park provides a continuum of care for elderly, disabled and low-income people. Forward Stride provides equine assisted therapy to disabled children and adults.

Kara Martin-Beijer

Kara is a results-driven marketing leader with over 25 years of international experience in broadcast and technology sectors. She has proven expertise in developing and executing strategic, creative campaigns that elevate brand reputation, strengthen product positioning, and drive revenue growth. She is skilled in overseeing multimillion-dollar global events and virtual experiences, ensuring flawless execution and measurable impact. She is a collaborative executive with deep proficiency in brand design and governance, demand generation, and integrated marketing strategies. In her corporate life, she is recognized for building and leading high-performing teams, forging key stakeholder relationships, and delivering results under pressure.

John Spence

John was born on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in Montana. He has over 50 years of
experience as a caseworker, program director, teacher, and trainer. At Fort Belknap, he worked
as a tribal health planner, group home director, parenting project coordinator, foster parent, tribal
councilman, and tribal college president. He also directed a student substance abuse program at
Chemawa Indian School in Salem, Oregon for seven years and directed the Social Services
Department at the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde for three years. John taught part-time
for 20 years at the School of Social Work at Portland State University (1998-2017) and served
for 6 years in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves (1963-69).

Since 2009 John and his two co-workers have involved hundreds of kids from all nine
Oregon Tribes in horse therapy workshops. He is also the author of Crazy Wolf: A Half-Breed
Story (2021, KMC Media) which is available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Dr. Barb Crabbe

Dr. Crabbe spent 30 years as a private practitioner and the owner of Pacific Crest Sporthorse, a 3-doctor general equine practice in Oregon, where she had a special interest in performance horse medicine. In early 2023, Dr. Crabbe transitioned her practice to her two long-term associates to pursue her passion for ethics in veterinary medicine. She completed a Masters degree in Bioethics at the Neiswanger Institute of Bioethics at the Stritch School of Medicine of Loyola University, Chicago, and is enrolled in the doctoral program at Loyola. She currently serves on the AVMA’s Counsel on Veterinary Services and the AAEP’s Ethics and Professional Conduct committee.

Dr. Crabbe is an avid dressage rider and USDF silver medalist and has won multiple USDF regional championships as well as Horse of the Year titles. In addition, she is a graduate with distinction from the USDF-L judges program. She lives on a farm outside of Portland, Oregon with her husband Bob, a veterinary internal medicine specialist. They have two girls who are almost fully launched, and currently focus their attention on 4 dogs, a cat, and 4 horses.

Rhonda Kittredge

Rhonda Kittredge brings more than 35 years of public service experience in law enforcement, supporting high profile cases, SWAT operations, command posts situations and investigations involving violent crimes and crimes against children. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and has dedicated much of her life to leadership, teamwork, and volunteer service.

A lifelong advocate for youth activities and athletics, Rhonda spent many years as a devoted “team mom” for her children’s sports programs and later served for 15 years running the Beaverton School District High School Snowboard Team. She also served five years on the Board as Treasurer for the Gorge League Snowboard Association as well as the Oregon Interscholastic Snowboard Association.

Rhonda began volunteering with Forward Stride in 2022, initially serving one day each week in AM Horse Care. Her passion for the organization quickly expanded into multiple other volunteer roles including Tack Help, Leader, Header, Sidewalker, Herd Health and Mentor. Shortly after joining, she was recognized as Volunteer of the Month, and after contributing more than 500 volunteer hours in her first year, she received the PATH – Region 9 Volunteer of the Year award.

Through her leadership, commitment to service, and deep dedication to the mission of equine-assisted therapy, Rhonda continues to make a meaningful impact on the Forward Stride community.

Patricia Phillips

Patricia retired in 2024 after a long and successful career in the tech industry, including 27 years working at Intel. She has held many roles including engineering, customer-facing and project management. She is excited to utilize her skills as well as equine-related background to give back to the Forward Stride community.

Patricia began as a volunteer leader for Forward Stride in January 2025, and was fortunate to work with several community partners, including NARA and Janus Youth Programs. The mission and values of Forward Stride really resonate with her.

She has also been a member of the Washington County Sheriff’s Posse (along with her Warm Springs mustang, Lakota) since 2022. In that role she has facilitated the training planning and has implemented new programs including an annual fundraising event. Patricia has also received hands-on training on technical large animal rescue, emergency evacuation and sheltering.

Most recently, Patricia began serving on the City of Hillsboro’s Historic Landmarks Advisory Committee, helping to preserve the cultural heritage of the Hillsboro community.

Besides her horse, she lives with her partner (Mike), an African Grey parrot (Madison) and a chihuahua-mix (Holden).