Paula Briney of Chatham, Illinois serves as the President of the HCI Board. Paula is the manager and head instructor of her family’s Pratense Farm. Paula teaches English lessons and coaches her students in competition. She competes in Saddleseat and dressage events. Paula advances the horse industry by volunteering her time and leadership with many organizations. She is a lifetime member of the United States Pony Club and a graduate of their program at the H-A level and is still very active in Sangamon Valley Pony Club. She is a lifetime member of the CenterLine Dressage organization which is part of the United States Dressage Federation.  Paula has been a delegate to the USDF convention for the last 10 years and is an active competitor.  She has Bronze, Silver, Gold Medal rider status with USDF, has passed their judges program with distinction and is accepted into the USEF "r" dressage judge program.  She serves on the Youth Charity Horse Show board as co-vice president.  She loves the Saddlebred and now serves as the committee chair for the ASHA Sporthorse committee and is vice president of one of their charter clubs called Versa. She has a BS from Stephens College in Equine Science with a minor in Business.Paula’s parents helped organize Horsemen’s Council of Illinois and Illinois Horse Fair, so she is a ready resource for other board members and volunteers. She joined the board of HCI in 2013. Paula has organized the English clinics, demonstrations and breed demos for Illinois Horse Fair for many years and currently serves as Chairman of the Illinois Horse Fair Committee.

Dr. French graduated from the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Minnesota in 1978 and began his professional career as an instructor at Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine where he did both ambulatory and in-house medicine and surgery.  Dennis then went to a private equine practice in Naperville, IL for a period of time before returning to LSU as an Assistant Professor of Large Animal Medicine and Surgery.  Dr. French was active in large animal practice during his career at LSU as well as being involved in numerous large animal research projects. He has published over 65 refereed papers on various large animal topics. He has also presented numerous presentations to audiences throughout the world. Dr. French certified as a Diplomate of Equine Practice by the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in 1985, and has maintained his certification in 1993, 2006 and 2014. Dr. French served as the lead shelter veterinarian for the Hurricane Katrina equine relief effort in 2005, spending over 50 days meeting the needs of over 300 rescued horses. He joined the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine as a Professor of Large Animal Medicine in 2009 and currently serves as the Interim Head of Department of Veterinary Clinical Medicine. Dennis is active on the HCI committees, serving as a member of awards, emergency response and Illinois Horse Fair. He and his bride of 34 years have three equids on their farm, a Peruvian Paso, a Paso Fino and a donkey. 

Brad Hubbard of Oregon, IL is a trail rider, and trail ride promoter and coordinator in Northwestern Illinois. He is active in the Rock River Trail and Horsemen’s Association, which is a non-profit organization dedicated to family fun, horsemanship, trail rides and horse shows. The RRTHA is the 2nd oldest incorporated saddle club (only by 3 months) in IL. Mr. Hubbard is especially well acquainted with gaited horses and gaited horse riders.

Dr. Anna Ruman works for the USDA, Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services, in Springfield, IL as the Area Emergency Coordinator for Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota. In this position, she works with state, federal, and local governments as well as private industry to promote and assist in emergency preparedness. She was the incident commander during the 2009 Contagious Equine Metritis incident in Illinois, receiving an award for her achievements. She is trained as a Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostician and delivers presentations to groups on current events in foreign animal disease. Anna, an Illinois native, is a lifetime horse owner of both pleasure and harness race horses. She is a licensed trainer and driver of harness horses and currently owns Standardbred broodmares. She resides on her farm in Coffeen, Illinois. Anna is also a member of the board of Illinois Equine Foundation.

Jerry Sutton, Norris City

Jerry Sutton and his wife Dorothy own S&H Arena - “Where Kids Are King”, in Norris City, Illinois. His family is passionate about providing opportunities for youth. Last year they hosted 17 events at their facility including shows, rodeos and clinics. They are avid supporters of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and annually host the Saddle Up for St. Jude auction. Jerry brings his experience in management of youth rodeo and youth horse shows, boarding, training, lessons, and breeding to HCI. Jerry is an AQHA Professional Horseman. Jerry also serves a Co-Chair for Illinois Horse Fair.

Lauren Malmberg, MBA, served as Animal Control Administrator and Shelter Director for the City and County of Peoria for 36 years.  She is active in the state legislature on animal issues and has served for the past year on the HCI Legislative Committee.  Lauren grew up with horses as her family bred and raised Appaloosas and Quarter Horses for 20 years.  She currently rides recreationally and competes in ranch riding, ranch sorting, and other classes.  Lauren is an approved humane investigator for equine and serves as adjunct faculty for Illinois Central College. 

Pam Rodely, Rockwood

Dennis Monroe, Bethany

Jenne Rosegay, Crystal Lake

Yvonne C. Ocrant is a transaction and litigation attorney and practices equine law, and commercial litigation in areas including employment, title insurance, general commercial litigation, at Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP, a Chicago based law firm.  She currently serves as Chair of the Equine Law Subcommittee of the Animal Law Section of the American Bar Association.

Ms. Ocrant assists individual horse owners, trainers, breeders, riding, boarding, and training facilities, veterinarians, and other equine industry clients litigate and resolve claims for personal injury, property damage, breach of contract, fraud, misrepresentation, and a variety of other legal issues. She also drafts contracts for horse purchases, sales, leases, and commission arrangements, and creates equine liability releases for boarding and training facilities, trainers, transporters, and other individuals and entities sponsoring or participating in equine activities.

Ms. Ocrant provides pro bono legal services for the Hooved Animal Humane Society (HAHS) in Woodstock, Illinois and Hooved Animal Rescue and Protection Society (HARPS) in Barrington Hills, Illinois, and is an active member of the Board of Directors for the Horsemen's Council of Illinois (HCI). Ms. Ocrant is a member of the Illinois Dressage and Combined Training Association (IDCTA) and currently trains for dressage and eventing in Illinois and Florida and competes in United States Dressage Federation (USDF), and United States Eventing Association (USEA) sanctioned events.