Beth Harre-Orr, Director

Beth was one of the co-founders of Bakas and has been its director since Bakas began in 1987. She is an NARHA certified riding instructor and loves teaching riders and watching their progress.  Beth is also an active liaison to the Horses for Handicapped non-profit organization that supports Bakas and helps to organize all the special events.

Her hobbies include riding her Harley Davidson motorcycle with friends and kayaking down lazy rivers.  She has a son and a daughter who are both in college and a dog and three cats who still live at home.

Pat Vannetta, Head Instructor

Pat has been at Bakas since the beginning,1987. He is an NARHA certified instructor as well as a driving instructor with horse and carriage. Pat likes to trail ride and ride his Iron horse. He is married and has a daughter and granddaughter who both love to ride in their spare time. They also like to volunteer at Bakas as often as they can.

Dani Johnson

Dani has been working at Bakas since 1998 but has been volunteering since she was twelve.  She is both an NARHA and ARIA certified riding instructor.  Her hobbies are horses, bowling and playing poker. Most of all, she enjoys working with the riders and their equine friends.

Gina Edwards

Gina has been one of the NARHA certified instructors at Bakas since 2001.  People say she is the happiest person on earth.  She enjoys horseback riding (naturally), working out, going to the beach and food.  She also loves working at Bakas and all the riders.

Pat Richards

Pat is an NARHA instructor working at Bakas for 5 years. She has two children, Andrew and Anna, and an awesome dog named Sandy. Her hobbies are tennis and kayaking.

Trish Friend

Trish is one of the NARHA certified instructors at Bakas. She started in 2003 and loves her job every day working with the horses and riders. Her hobbies are gardening and horses (of course).

Kelly Palmer

Kelly is 17 years old and a junior at Tampa Preparatory School. She works on the weekends and during special events. Kelly started volunteering at Bakas in January, 2005, and became a member of the staff in the spring of 2008. She loves working with the horses and the riders. In her spare time, you can find Kelly playing tennis or spending time with her friends; most likely though, she will be at the barn.

Jeffrey Gonzalez

Jeffrey has been employed by Hillsborough County since 2002 and joined Bakas in 2006. He is one of the maintenance workers and also a riding assistant. He enjoys spending time at the beach with his family and playing video games.

Jim Glisson

Jim has worked at Bakas since 2007 in the maintenance department and also as an assistant instructor. He grew up riding and showing horses. He and his wife Tonya have two girls, Amanda and Kimber and one grandson, Landon. He likes to hunt and fish in his spare time.

Jerry Nemecek

Jerry has been with Bakas since 2008 in maintenance and assisting with the riding classes. He enjoys outings at the beach, good food, and loves spending time outdoors.