October 31, 2024: Few people the world over can claim to be chosen to receive recognition for their extraordinary efforts to reduce violence in the training of horses, dedication to assist veterans and first responders with post-traumatic stress and for their development of youth leaders by adopting Monty Roberts’ concepts and initiatives.
Denise discovered her passion for horses at a very early age and started riding when she was five years old. She got her own horse when she was thirteen and still owns him now. After completing a school for foreign languages and interpretation, she went traveling and spent time learning from different Western trainers in Canada, Austria and Germany.
Ms. Heinlein is back in California to teach the Monty Roberts Introductory Course of Horsemanship at the California Horse Center on Flag Is Up Farms in Solvang, California December 9-21, 2024.
Since 2006 Denise has followed Monty Roberts’ methods and has been working and learning from Monty himself in addition to various Monty Roberts Certified Instructors at the Monty Roberts International Learning Center (MRILC) and in Germany, Portugal, Netherlands and England. Denise has been a member of Monty’s German Tour team since 2008 where she is involved in the horse selection and Join-Up® presentations. In November 2009 Denise realized her goal of becoming a Certified Instructor of Monty’s methods and is now spreading the concepts of Monty’s non-violent approach.
After teaching classes and courses in Germany and gaining a lot of experience in the Thoroughbred industry, she went to teach at the Monty Roberts International Learning Center in California. Denise is a member of Monty Roberts Instructors Committee. After her time as Resident Instructor at the MRILC, Denise traveled to Argentina and India to share her knowledge of horse behavior with the Polo World and hold the first Monty Roberts Course in Asia. She is located in Bavaria, Germany.
For only the second occasion in history that the British Crown has awarded certificates for influential equine protection work, this recognition follows the acknowledgment of eight horsemen and women the Queen recognized in 2012. The Royal Family had planned to recognize this additional group in-person at Buckingham Palace, but the gathering and in-person presentation were postponed to a later date due to world events surrounding COVID-19.
Monty Roberts, founder of Join-Up® International and world renowned horse trainer, enlisted his Legacy Strategist, daughter Debbie Roberts Loucks to assist him with naming a stellar group of individuals who have worked tirelessly to learn and carry on the gentle and effective concepts that Queen Elizabeth witnessed in 1989 when Roberts demonstrated Join-Up and the introduction of the first saddle and rider to a young filly owned by the Queen’s mother.
Recognizing the value of Join-Up, Queen Elizabeth encouraged Roberts to demonstrate and train more horsepersons in these methods, setting him on a life’s mission that continues today, ‘to leave the world a better place for horses and for people, too’.
Roberts gave his perspective on his life’s journey leading to this honor which is to encourage individuals to carry on his advocacy for horses and their training:
“In 1939 at the age of four, I rode and competed in my first horse show. At 88 I have known no other life but that of life with horses. Four universities and two doctorates in behavioral sciences along with major education from the horses themselves, I have won 11 world championships from the saddle. I survived a violent childhood and sought to perfect the training of horses in the absence of violence. Queen Elizabeth observed my work in 1989 and directed me to take the concepts to the world. I have demonstrated my nonviolent principles in 41 countries with over 3000 individual horses now.”
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MONTY ROBERTS AVAILABLE FOR SELECT INTERVIEWS:
The New York Times bestselling author and world-renowned horse trainer Monty Roberts is available for interviews.
MONTY ROBERTS first gained widespread fame with the release of his New York Times Best Selling book, The Man Who Listens To Horses; a chronicle of his life and development of his non-violent horse training methods called Join-Up®. Monty grew up on a working horse farm as a firsthand witness to traditional, often violent methods of horse training and breaking the spirit with an abusive hand. Rejecting that, he went on to win nine world’s championships in the show ring. Today, Monty’s goal is to share his message that “Violence is never the answer.” Roberts has been encouraged by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II with the award of the Membership in The Royal Victorian Order, as well as becoming Patron of Join-Up International. Other honors received were the ASPCA “Founders” award and the MSPCA George T. Angell Humanitarian Award and FEI’s Man of the Year. Monty was recently included as Horse and Hound Magazine’s Top 50 Horsemen of All Time. Monty is credited with launching the first of its kind Equus Online University; an interactive online lesson site that is the definitive learning tool for violence-free training.
JOIN-UP philosophies can be seen at work with both humans and horses across the world, from farms to major corporations. To learn more about Monty Roberts or the many applications of his Join-Up training methods, visit http://www.montyroberts.com/. Horse Sense and Soldiers aired on Discovery Military in 2010 highlighting the therapeutic effect horses and Monty Roberts’ Join-Up® have on PTSD. Soon after Monty and his team developed the Horse Sense & Healing program for veterans and first responders. Lead-Up International was officially launched worldwide at the Monty Roberts International Learning Center in Solvang, California, in February 2017. The purpose of Lead-Up International is to reduce violence in the community by creating peaceful leaders from vulnerable youth utilizing equine-assisted therapy and non-verbal communication, building trust-based relationships.
Media Contact:
Debbie Loucks
(949) 632-1856
debbie@montyroberts.com