About

Spitfire Farm’s mission is to provide the South Florida equestrian community with a safe and nurturing environment for both horse and rider, by offering a premier boarding facility with a prize-winning training program.

Spitfire strives to maintain its three core values: 

Integrity
Innovation
Inclusion

Meet the Founders: 

Spitfire Farm is the true epitome of a family business, founded by Husband and Wife, Paul and Ejola Cook, who actively run the day to day operations of the farm.  

Ejola Cook, an avid equestrian from age four is looking to marry her business acumen as a former senior executive in a large company with her passion for horses. From 2015-2022 Mrs. Cook, has been a senior executive with Off Lease Only LLC, one of the largest privately owned Used Car Dealerships in the country. During her tenure she has held the roles of Senior Vice President, Chief Administrator Officer, and Chief Legal Officer. Mrs. Cook now divides her time between her private legal practices, the Auto Legal Group Florida, and E Cook Consulting LLC, and the Farm. Mrs. Cook has been recognized as a leader in the Independent Used Car Market, and as an attorney was named a Lawyer of Distinction in 2020, a Top-Rated Lawyer in 2021, and one of 2021 power lawyers in the New York Times. Mrs. Cook is currently working on her new equestrian clothing line “Spitfire” which will be debuting in the spring of 2024.

Mrs. Cook is also active in her community as the current president of the Plantation Acres Saddle Club and a Sunday school teacher at Bethesda by the Sea.

Paul Cook, is a person who makes ideas a reality. Mr. Cook started off at the young age of fifteen as a construction worker and very quickly learned the skill of looking at someone’s ideas on paper and making them a reality. Trained as a radio broadcaster, Mr. Cook spent over 11 years in the radio industry including as an on-air personality on 99.9 Kiss Country, the 12th largest market in the country. Looking for more,  Mr. Cook joined the military in 2009. Sargent Cook began his military career as an aircraft structural mechanic working on the F-16 fighter jets, as a certified A&P mechanic which took him on a tour to Afghanistan. Upon his return he was transferred to the Public Affairs department with a focus on mass communication. Sargent Cook continues to be with the military as an Active Reservist stationed at the Homestead Air Force Base. 

Mr. and Mrs. Cook are well versed in working as a team, having successfully run a restaurant on the West Coast of Scotland for their family’s vacation resort. Now they have continued that tradition with having their four children ages 16, 15, 12, and 9 work regularly at the farm as well. 

Meet Our Trainers:

January Magee has been a trainer for over 30 years and is an outstanding member of the South Florida equestrian community. She has taken riders from beginners to showing at the highest level in the country. Her training style allows riders to progress and be confident in their abilities. From importing horses internationally to showing at the most highly rated shows in the world, we are proud to have January Magee on our team.

 

Lorraine Royal training for over a decade, focuses on our junior show team, and teaching our young riders the ropes both in the ring and around the farm. Lorraine works with beginners to intermediate ages 6 and up. Her passion, and patience make her a great fit for those starting out in the equestrian world.

 

Lauren Soohoo With over 20 years of horse experience riding in both Hunter Jumpers and Dressage and over 10 years of teaching, Lauren is able to connect and coach our newest riders starting out for the first time, to advanced riders who are looking to hit the next level, and everyone in between! Lauren primarily focuses on our young adult students and older, and always prioritizes developing the connection between horse and rider.   As a rider herself, Lauren has completed and placed at Zone II Hunter Finals, Marshall and Sterline Finals, and IHSA Regionals and continually leads her students by example.

 

Mark Wonderly, a former judge for Hunters and Hunter seat equitation, has traveled extensively to judge hundreds of competitions including the World Equestrian Festival and National Collegiate Equestrian Association and has produced national award-winning Horses and Ponies. In addition, Mark has almost 40 years experience as a trainer and teaches students of all ages, ranging from our young beginners to advanced riders. Mark has a seasoned eye for talent and truly enjoys watching his students advance both in and out of the ring.

 

Johnny Vega, has a true heart for his students and horses. As a professional horse trainer and instructor, he has a long-standing equine history and emphasizes his knowledge of horse psychology and natural horsemanship to allow horse and rider to grow and bond together. Starting with his childhood in Ecuador, Johnny spent time studying international professionals around the world before making his way to the US. Since then, he has worked in many of the southern states as well as NY, CA, and Canada, taking his riders and their horses all the way to the top. Johnny has a passion for discovering and developing what it takes for each side of a human-equine partnership to fully enjoy the process of learning and growing in the direction of their goals.