More About the Founders
MARIA KIMBLE, CO-FOUNDER
While I did not grow up with them, horses always tugged at my heart.
In 2007 I joined many other voices to try and bring an end to horse slaughter. We did letter writing campaigns, established phone banks and peaceful protests. We joined together to go to our state capitals and Capital Hill as citizen “lobbyists”. While there has been some movement, sadly it is a battle still being fought today.
In 2009 I left the corporate world and decided to further devote myself to horses and helping them in any way I could. I volunteered with several horse rescues, doing hands-on care and rehabilitation and other necessary tasks. I served on the Board of Directors of an organization that rescued abused and neglected mustangs and burros, rehabilitated them and then secured lifetime sanctuary for each, where they will never be faced with abuse or neglect again. I was fortunate enough to personally rehabilitate 7 out of the dozens of mustangs saved.
In 2010 became involved with an organization that used horses to help humans through non-riding equine-assisted psychotherapy and learning. I started as an occasional horse care volunteer, then became a full time volunteer, then employee serving as the Director of Equine Wellness. I was so struck by the partnering of horses in this fashion and wanted to engage in therapeutic work so I became a Certified Equine Specialist under the Eagala model, a non-riding equine-assisted psychotherapy and learning modality to help humans with their mental health, wellness and growth. I love this model as it does not require horses to be ridden which opens up opportunities to horses who are no longer able to carry a rider.
I also became a Certified Equine Sports Massage Therapist, regularly donating services to equine rescues and sanctuaries to help horses with their sore bodies as they healed.
In 2012 I was introduced to Tim. He was passionate about ending horse slaughter and helping horses. We soon started working together and in 2014 decided to formalize what we were doing by forming Dominion Equine Welfare.
TIM PARMLY, CO-FOUNDER
After 20 years in the automotive trade, I decided a career change was needed.
Growing up on a farm and loving animals spurred me to enroll in the Veterinary Technology program offered at Northern Virginia Community College. Graduating as a Licensed Veterinary Technician in 1989, I started working in a dairy practice but soon realized horses were the animal I most wanted to work with.
After working with a mobile equine practice for 8 years, in 1999 I was offered a job at Virginia Tech’s Middleburg Agriculture Research and Extension Center. I was responsible for 35 to 40 Thoroughbred broodmares and their foals, 20 to 30 yearlings, 5 stallions and a group of 9 Arab geldings.
In 2009, I was told the TB research was ending and the horses had to go. The university didn’t seem to care where they went as no offer of help came. Faced with this daunting task, I reached out to a friend and together we found new homes and funding for transport as horses went to Wyoming, Missouri and Florida. All the horses were donated to the MARE Center but only two donors were willing to take their horse back. During this time I realized what can happen to unwanted horses. The horses were spread across the country, but all had a safe home.
In 2010 I retired from Virginia Tech and began lobbying for better treatment of unwanted horses which led me to meeting Maria Kimble and the two of us forming Dominion Equine Welfare in 2014.