About Us

Jean Gerber

Founder & President

After a successful commercial real estate career in New York, Miami and San Francisco, Jean has made her home in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico since 2002. She served as Executive Director and Board Member of Casita Linda, a highly-respected nonprofit that builds homes for deserving families around San Miguel de Allende. A passionate horsewoman, Jean understood the power of equine therapy to transform young lives, and together with a talented team of equestrian, business and medical professionals, she founded Equinoterapia SMA in 2023.

Mike Koen

Treasurer

A 25+ year veteran of Sears Roebuck, Mike brings a wealth of success managing growing organizations with complex budgets. His service in the nonprofit world started in Chicago, where he served on the Executive Committee of SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) from 2003 to 2008 and then CJESenior Life from 2004 to present. Here in San Miguel, Mike offers financial expertise and support to Casita Linda, Feed the Hungry and Ninos con Autismo – a therapeutic center he co-founded with his wife Joyce to offer testing, training and resources to children on the Autism spectrum.

Jim Kraus

C0-Founder

A former advertising Creative Director in Chicago, Los Angeles and Dallas, Jim spent his college summers teaching art to developmentally disabled young adults living in group homes. He moved to San Miguel de Allende full-time in 2021 and creates art in his studio in colonia San Antonio. Having raised a child on the autism spectrum, Jim understands the unique needs of neuro-diverse children and their families—and the value of therapeutic services to foster loving communities where all are accepted.

Noor Ayub

Program Director

Clinical psychologist. Equine Therapist

Originally from Mexico City, Noor studied clinical and health psychology at the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM) and has specialized in equine therapy since 2021. She is Certified by both La Asociación Mexicana de Equitación Terapéutica, A.C. (AMET) and Grupo Gronar. Noor has worked in both clinical and hospital settings with a wide range of special needs children in various equine therapy centers.

Lisa Attridge de Gordillo

Certified Equine Therapist

Lisa Attridge de Gordillo grew up in the U.K. and spent her early years swimming and riding horses, which became a lifelong passion for her. She has spent the past 35 years working in health & fitness areas with a focus on movement, wellbeing and nutrition. She moved to Mexico in 2001, where she met and married her husband, who is also a horse lover.
Over time, she began to study a wide range of equine-assisted therapies and in 2023, she received her certification as an Equine-Assisted Coach, focusing on emotional, life and empowering coaching for adults. Lisa is also certified under AMET (Associacion Mexicana de Equitación Terateutica A.C.) as a
Hippotherapist specializing in children and young adults.

Brenda Sexton

Brenda comes to Equinoterapia SMA with honed business skills and a passion for creating innovative and fun events.  After successful careers in commercial real estate and film and television production in Chicago, she now leverages her success in engaging industry leaders and helps inspire others to join our community and support our mission.  She and her husband have lived in San MIguel de Allende for 12 years.  

Meira M. Bonnici

A recent Psychology graduate from Willamette University, Meira is completing her internship with Equinoterapia SMA. She hopes to leverage her experience with special needs children across various age groups. On her path to becoming a child therapist, she is eager to combine her passion for children and horses, explore the transformative potential of equine therapy, and spend more time in San Miguel, a place she has visited many times since childhood.