Donate in memory of Valarie Caretsky
Valarie was born and raised on Long Island, NY. She was a beloved teacher who received her Bachelors and Masters Degrees from Stony Brook University in New York. Valarie was married to her husband, Bill Caretsky, for 40 years. The pair has three children to whom Valarie was devoted. Most of their years together were lived near the ocean off the coast of Long Island. Preceding her untimely and tragic passing, Bill and Valarie relocated to Lake Monticello, Virginia. Still a New Yorker at heart, Valarie loved how the central Virginia landscape reminded her of childhood summers spent on her grandparents’ farm in upstate NY.
Valarie was raised with a brother who has Autism and she was a devoted and impassioned animal lover. Her upbringing and affinity for animals inspired Bill to initiate creation of both the donation fund and the scholarship fund in her honor.
The scholarship is available to the riders who come to us from the Lafayette School in Charlottesville, Va. For nearly 24 years, this adaptive and integrative day school has been providing a combination of special education and therapeutic intervention utilizing evidence-based practices, for children and adolescents who are navigating emotional and behavioral challenges.