Thornton Academy Postscripts Alumni Magazine Spring 2015 | Page 9

Leather, Horseflesh, and the Roar of the Crowd

Amanda Boutet ‘08 returns home and she means business
Sixteen horses, a rabbit, a donkey, two cats, ducks, guinea
hens, more than 50 wild turkeys. These are the critters that
Amanda Boutet ’08 shares with the two TA international
homestay students who live with her at her new horse
facility in Arundel, named Specially Designed Stables.
Although the barn was cold on a grey day, each horse
greeted Amanda at their stall door with a whoosh of warm
breath. She introduced each horse and recounted their life
story, much like she introduced her father, Steve Boutet
’79 who works with her at the stable. The horses are people
here and they have an important job to do – help teach
clients how to ride and compete at some of the largest
horse shows in New England and beyond.
While a student at Thornton Academy, Amanda garnered
state and regional equestrian championships and then
took her Saddlebred named “Specially Designed” to
Nationals in St. Louis. Her street cred? The only rider
under 18, she placed 10th against 30 of some of the nicest
horses in the country. Amanda decided to convert the
passion for her sport into a career.
After graduating from TA, she attended Johnson and
Wales University in Providence and majored in Equine
Business Management. Amanda laughed when she said,
“My friends tell me that I’m the one of them who’s done it.
I made a plan, went to school and came back to set up my
business. I guess it’s true.”
At 25 years old, Amanda owns an impressive facility that
boasts 16 stalls, a large indoor arena, a visitor lounge
with full kitchen, and living areas for herself and another

trainer. She found time in her busy schedule – between
training horses, teaching students, and prepping a pony for
a birthday party – to explain one of the next steps for her
business: doubling the size of the facility.
Of the students from Thailand and China who live with her
as homestay students – Pim and Sherry -- Amanda said,
“They like the horses, pat them, and feed them treats. But if
the horses bang their stall doors, they run away. The girls are
great; when I’m down here early in the morning feeding the
horses, they get themselves up and are ready to go to school.”
The business is a multi-generational family operation with
lots of TA connections. Amanda started the business with her
grandfather Ronald Boutet ’57, her father Steve who works
with her on daily operations, and Amanda’s boyfriend Tom
Cloutier ’09 – an industrial design engineer – who laid the
10,000 rubber bricks that line the facilities hallways. It looks
as though the Boutet relationship with Thornton Academy
is a legacy that will continue. Amanda said, “I liked my time
so much at Thornton Academy, I chose to buy land here in
Arundel because I want Thornton to be an educational choice
for my family.”
“She’s my boss now.
It’s kinda nice,” said
Steve Boutet ‘79 of his
daughter, Amanda ‘08,
Owner and Trainer
of Specially Designed
Stables.

9