Healing in Motion: How Sandi Supports TRI Members Through Equine Coaching
- Katie Doyle Myers
- a few seconds ago
- 3 min read
At The Reentry Initiative, we know that reentry is more than just checking boxes or attending appointments—it’s about rediscovering your own strength, agency, and belonging. That’s why we’re proud to offer creative wellness practices to support our Members as whole people, including a unique and powerful approach: equine coaching.
Enter Sandi Wetenkamp, a certified Equine Facilitated Learning Coach (EFLC) whose work with TRI Members is equal parts grounding and transformative.
Sandi was first introduced to TRI in 2016 by Kathy Pike, the pioneer and leader in EFLC and founder of the Academy for Coaching with Horses. Her passion lies in helping people reconnect with themselves through work with horses. “Coaching is different from therapy,” Sandi explains, “I don’t need to know someone’s trauma or past. I focus on the present moment - how someone is showing up in their life today, and what they want to shift.”
Coaching Through the Arena
Sandi often invites Members to build a physical obstacle course in the horse arena, representing the real-life barriers they’re facing - whether that’s reconnecting with family, managing court obligations, or navigating job applications. But here’s the twist: “People build these obstacle courses without always thinking about what it will take to actually get a horse through it,” she says.
That’s when the magic happens.
Maybe the horse stops, drags a hoof, veers off course. “All of that is information,” Sandi says. “We pause, ask the Member what they noticed. The horse becomes a mirror for their mindset or emotional state.”
Then, with new awareness, Members go through the course again. And this time—it flows. “One Member’s face was just beaming afterward,” Sandi recalls. “They realized they could do it. That moment becomes a touchstone they can return to when life feels overwhelming again.”
“One Member’s face was just beaming afterward...they realized they could do it. That moment becomes a touchstone they can return to when life feels overwhelming again.”
Access and Expansion
In working with TRI Members, Sandi emphasizes the need for accessibility. She partners with a fellow equine coach to offer weekday and weekend sessions at a ranch outside Boulder. TRI staff refer Members who express interest in equine coaching as part of their wraparound support. “TRI feels like my community,” Sandi shares. “We collaborate on schedules and transportation to make sure the support is available when people are ready to engage.”
Emotional Intelligence in Action
Sandi also facilitates emotional intelligence workshops for TRI. In one memorable session, a participant shared, “I’m really angry - and it gets me in trouble. Last time I interacted with the police, they said if I act like that again, they’re taking me to jail.” For Sandi, moments like these reflect the deep hunger people have to understand and express their emotions in healthy ways. “Anger isn’t bad - it’s information,” she says. “It can tell you a boundary is being crossed. Coaching helps people build a relationship with their emotions instead of
suppressing them.”
Sandi’s philosophy is simple: everyone matters.
Community as Catalyst
Ultimately, Sandi’s philosophy is simple: everyone matters. “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link,” she says. “Our communities are only as strong as our willingness to support each other. I see every person as whole, with their own self-agency. It’s unconditional love.”
The horses, Sandi says, are just the catalyst. The real transformation comes from within.