For the Love of Land and Horses
Sheila Head in action on a cutting horse.
Are you going to Hawaii? If you're planning to bring your horse, then you've likely been in touch with Sheila Head. She operates the only equine transportation service to the Hawaiian Islands, and she does it from her home base at the Sheila Head Ranch near Bodega Bay.
Sheila started her Hawaiian Transport business 45 years ago, coordinating with horse owners and major shipping networks between the Ports of Oakland and Honolulu. First working out of Yuba City, Sheila purchased her seaside land in 2000 where she has managed the business ever since. From her office and residence, tucked into the hillsides out of view of Highway 1, she has just a short walk to the hilltop to gaze down the Estero Americano and out to the ocean.
Sheila has spent a life intimately connected with horses. Her early years were spent on the family's ranch, part of the Newhall Land and Farming Co., where she began working with horses, riding them to school, and learning to help gather and ship cattle. After her family moved up to Woodside, California, near San Francisco, she continued her connection by riding jumping horses.
No matter where she went, Sheila always had horses in her life. Even while working in the medical administration profession as the administrative assistant for the head of surgery at the University of Utah Medical Center, then at the Children's Hospital of San Francisco, she kept horses in nearby stables. When it was time to return to the land, Sheila bought a ranch in Yuba City, California, where she lived for 25 years before her move to Bodega Bay.
Sheila had a decades-long partnership showing cutting horses alongside legendary trainer Greg Ward. Her most noteworthy cutting horses included Colonel Sugar Freckle (Finalist, NCHA Super Stakes / Non-Pro); Mister Dual Pep (finished 4th, NCHA Super Stakes); Just Mister Dual (Finalist, NCHA Futurity); and Doc-A-Chex (Finalist, NCHA Futurity).
In 2020, Sheila conserved her 600-acre coastal ranch with the California Rangeland Trust. Cows and their calves also roam the hills of the Sheila Head Ranch, helping maintain the beauty of this special place. With the peace of mind that her ranch would forever remain rolling green hills for livestock, she furthered her commitment by leaving the land to the Rangeland Trust as an irrevocable gift in her estate plan.
Like Sheila, you too can also help preserve California's working rangelands by leaving land (real estate) to the California Rangeland Trust or including another type of gift to us in your estate plan. We are happy to help you find a gift that meets your personal and charitable goals. Please contact Shannon Foucault at (916) 444-2096 or sfoucault@rangelandtrust.org to discuss your gift options.