Destry Forgette

Assistant Director

Born and raised in a small Colorado town, Destry worked with horses and cattle. At 17 he enlisted in the Navy where he secured an education in the art of Welding and Propulsion Engineering. While in the Navy, Destry traveled around the world three times. He was honorably discharged from active duty after six years. During active duty Destry was also able to pursue his love for riding professional rodeo. Destry has worked as a cowboy on cattle ranches for over 20 years. Several serious horses related injuries and alcohol abuse brought that phase of his life to an end.

Destry states, “The 12-Step recovery process has changed my life. It brought me to this program and provided me with the opportunity to develop an equine program and teach basic horsemanship and riding skills to academy residents.” Destry has been involved in the Gatehouse Academy program since 2003; his titles have included Director of Equine Operations and Program Director of the Hassayampa River Ranch. In addition to this, Destry has played a role in many other developments including education, life skills, and crisis intervention. Destry’s love for horses and ranch work coupled with his cowboy lifestyle is widely admired and respected by the staff and residents. To hear more about Destry’s personal recovery journey, you can read about it in the book, “The Harder They Fall” by Gary Stromberg and Jane Merrill.

SCA Staff

• Casey Arrillaga
• Judy Barnes
• Gera Brown
• Katryn Cross
• Rebecca Cross
• Corey Fellbaum
• Destry Forgette
• James Fouhey
• DeAnn Hall
• Megan Heiser
• Jean Holly-Jenkinson, MA
• Holly Howard
• Wanda Hunt
• Dave Johnson, MEd
• Bert LaCombe
• Vince Lauricella
• Don Lewis, MA, MS
• Ted McNeil
• Jonathon Romero
• Nicholas Shake
• Richard Tracy
• Michael Wolff