SESLOC Credit Union is proud to honor Jen Foss as a SESLOC Young Change Maker. Jen earned the award in July 2025 for her commitment to community as a small business owner and running a horse rescue operation after the devastating wildfires in Southern California.
The SESLOC Young Change Maker Award is given monthly to a young person or young professional under 40 doing significant work to benefit their community. Anyone can nominate a young person for the SESLOC Young Change Maker award on the Wild 106 website.
Jenn Foss owns Behind the Barn Consignment in Atascadero, offering the community affordable access to used horse tack and accessories. With her unique knowledge of horsemanship, Jen was in a unique position to help out when the wildfires tore through Southern California in the beginning of the year.
To support those who experienced losses from the fires, Jenn organized a drive through her social media pages to collect donations. Working with other horse owners and social workers, she quickly put together a list of items desperately needed in the aftermath of the fires. What came next was a response only the Central Coast could make happen.
Jen only anticipated filling one horse trailer with supplies. Instead, she received donations from all across the region – as far north as Bradley to as far south as Orcutt – with enough supplies to fill six horse trailers. This would only be the start of her adventure.
After making the convoy down to Southern California, she received a call from a horse owner asking if they could rescue two ponies from the burn area. Working with the local authorities, Jen and her team was allowed in on the condition that they were on their own.
While the home was burned down, the two ponies were still alive and surviving. Calming them with horse cookies, Jen was able to corral both ponies and assess their injuries. Despite singed manes and a cough, both were in good health. She transported both ponies to a farm in Templeton where they are recovering while their family rebuilds.
Beyond her support of California’s equestrian community, Jen also ran a dirt bike race in the Mojave Desert alongside her husband, friends, and family. She says she participated for “good times, not lap times,” and looks forward to participating again next year.
Jen says she’s honored to earn the SESLOC Young Change Maker award but gives the credit to the community. Calling herself “impulsive” when it comes to community support efforts, she thanks everyone on the Central Coast saying they are “shoulder to shoulder with me through all of my…ideas and advocacy.”