Meet the Staff
Meet Lucky Orphans’ Staff led by the Founder and Executive Director, Deanna Hearn
Deanna Hearn | Founder and Executive Director
A well-established member of the local professional equine community, Deanna started out as an exercise rider for various farms from Westchester to Columbia Counties. Next came barn management, eventually transitioning to business-owner of Equine Escape Stable. Within a few years of opening Equine Escape, Deanna began to recognize a disturbing trend within the community. She was receiving a growing number of inquiries regarding unwanted horses and how to report abuse and neglect. This problem was only exacerbated by requests from the DCSPCA to foster seized horses which had begun to outnumber available spaces at their own facilities. Determined to be part of the solution, Deanna established Lucky Orphans Horse Rescue to offer permanent sanctuary to these otherwise unwanted, abused, or neglected animals, and provide them with a safe haven where they would never again experience the situations that led them to LOHR in the first place.
Kelsey Zwarych | Barn Manager
I’ve always had a love for horses and animals in general. I used to ride horses when I was younger! For the past 10 years I’ve worked with children as a nanny, and also worked in a daycare for a few years. I recently came across Lucky Orphans while looking for a fresh start, and started volunteering instantly falling in love! After a couple of weeks Deanna offered me a job and the rest is history! I am forever grateful for the chance to work at such an amazing horse rescue.
Dawn Isaacson | Office Manager/Grant Manager
In 2011, I was looking for an inexpensive, relaxed environment where my daughter, Tori, could have hands-on experiences with animals. When we found Lucky Orphans, we had no idea how much it would come to mean to both of us.
Over the last 14 years, I’ve been part of community events, learned the ins and outs of animal and barn care, and witnessed the highs and lows that come with running an equine sanctuary. Supporting the farm became my passion, and I took it upon myself to learn grant writing to help provide LOHR with much-needed funding.
Balancing this with a full-time job was challenging—I used to joke that work was getting in the way of what I truly wanted to do. But now, in my retirement, I get to focus fully on this next chapter. I’m excited to take on my new role as Office Manager while continuing to contribute through grant writing. Looking back, I realize I’ve been preparing for this for years. I’m deeply grateful to be part of the LOHR community. It’s shown me that when you believe in something, you can make the impossible happen.
