Marie Roussel: A Senior Profile Portrait by Katherine Higgins (2014)

Marie Roussel has been a riding instructor at Webb Ranch since she was 18 years old, and I was one of her first students - I was 7. She teaches all levels of horseback riders; from tiny tots who ride ranch owned horses to competitive riders who travel with multiple horses each weekend. This made her instantly intriguing to me, I wanted to get to know her more as a person and less as just someone I had fun riding with every week. I learned a lot about what Marie loves about her job, and learned a lot about the kinds of sacrifices she makes for it. She drives an hour to and from work every day, doesn't make a whole lot of money, but somehow she has a smile on her face every moment of every day. I grew as a person in that I got exposed to just how complex a person can be, and how much more you can learn about someone even after knowing them for almost a decade. Marie has been inspiring me since I was absolutely tiny, and hopefully she'll continue to inspire me for many years to come.