Louise Smith
Wellington, FL
It turns out that I’m not good at retirement. I need to feel as if I am doing something that matters and helps others at this point in my life. On top of that, I function best when I have more structure, more demands and more interaction.
I retired from the tech industry and was working in a friend’s startup when I found out about the Encore Fellowship program. I did my Fellowship at the Community School of Music and Art and helped with their marketing. I finished my Fellowship and became director of marketing for a different nonprofit in the education field.
Today, I guess you’d say I’m on my third encore as Executive Director of the Equestrian Aid Foundation, a nonprofit based in Florida. I married into the horse world. My husband makes his living by training and selling horses. I took up riding myself and fell in love with it.
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For me this is my ideal job, combining my passion for horses with a nonprofit mission.The Foundation provides financial grants to equestrians who suffer a catastrophic illness or injury – including farriers, grooms, trainers, riders and breeders – ordinary people with medical expenses that can wipe out the family savings.
Equestrian Aid grants have been awarded to equestrians in all walks of life in 30 states, including a 16-year old girl left quadriplegic after a riding accident, whom we helped with expenses not covered by her insurance such as aqua therapy. Also a farrier named Joe, who suffered spinal injuries when a horse he was shoeing fell on him. Joe is partially paralyzed, and he will never return to the farrier work that he loves. The Foundation helped him to cover basic living expenses while getting back on his feet.
My Encore Fellowship experience was invaluable to making the transition to the nonprofit world. I came to appreciate the difference between working a career for money vs. working for a passion. Understanding how nonprofits boards work, nurturing relationships with donors and funders – all that grew from my time as an Encore Fellow. By the time I applied for this position, I had a mix of business world and nonprofit experience and I’m positive that combination made a huge difference in enabling me to join this team.