Archive for the ‘Industry Organizations’ Category

Long before most Americans knew that ex-racehorses could end up on someone’s dinner plate in Europe, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation was doing what it could to provide an alternative to the slaughterhouse or a life of neglect and abuse. Founded in 1982, the TRF is the oldest, largest and best known operation dedicated to helping Thoroughbreds no longer able to race or serve as breeding animals.

The founder of TRF was Monique S. Koehler, who had a unique vision to have these horses serve as part of a vocational training program at the Walkill Correctional Facility in New York. In short, the TRF would provide the horses and Walkill would supply land and inmates who would be taught how to care for the horses as part of their own rehabilitation. The program has been a success, for both horses and the humans who have cared for them. Many former inmates have been quick to credit the TRF program for their own personal turnaround, as the therapeutic value of working with horses has been well documented. Click here to see a video about the TRF produced by HRTV.

This unique prison program has been replicated in five states that have TRF farms at correctional institutions and since the spring of 2004 the organization has operated a rehabilitation and retraining facility – the Maker’s Mark Secretariat Center – at the Kentucky Horse Park near Lexington. The Secretariat Center is now open for public visitors from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday through Saturday, with interactive demonstrations on Saturday mornings from 10-11 a.m. Horses from the Secretariat Center have been adopted out for second careers to horse owners around the country.

Like all welfare organizations, the TRF depends on donations to fulfill a mission that hopes to eventually rescue all ex-racehorses from slaughter, neglect or abuse. Breeders who produce the horses were recently given an option by the Jockey Club to contribute to the TRF through a checkoff program at the time a Thoroughbred is registered. Click here for details. But there are many ways to make a gift, sponsor a horse or adopt a horse.

Beginning today and running through Dec. 20, the TRF has launched an online fundraising auction of items ranging from racing memorabilia to exclusive vacation getaways. To see the list of auction items and begin bidding, click here.

Throughout the past week of the Thanksgiving holiday, the Paulick Report has focused on a variety of equine charities or individuals in the Thoroughbred industry who have dedicated a part of their lives to helping others less fortunate. These are only a small number of the many extremely worthy organizations and people who are making a difference to make this a better industry.

Here are links to the organizations featured in the past week: Belmont Child Care Association/Anna House; the Exceller Fund; ReRun; the Salvation Army fund-raising page started by my former colleague Ron Mitchell; Thoroughbred Charities of America; Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation; and Tranquility Farm.

There are others, too numerous to mention, and I would invite readers to list their favorite equine charities in the comment section below. I sincerely hope each of you will consider a gift, no matter how large or small, to an organization that is making a difference in our lives and in our industry.

A group of fans discussing Exceller’s death on an online forum decided to do more than mourn his death. They pledged to support Thoroughbred rescue efforts, initially at the United Pegasus Foundation in California. They eventually forming the Exceller Fund to keep alive the name of the horse trainer Charlie Whittingham called the best Thoroughbred never to win an Eclipse Award. Exceller was, however, posthumously elected to the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame.

This grassroots organization of racing fans and horse lovers began with just a dozen people, each pledging a minimum of $15 a month to support rescue efforts. The Exceller Fund’s membership has grown to well over 100 members and has saved more than 250 horses since its creation. There are no only employees, only volunteers, and the Fund’s annual budget is approximately $70,000. (Click here to see the Exceller Fund’s financials.)

Click here to learn about becoming a member of the Exceller Fund or here to make a donation.

Its mission statement – Providing a Future Beyond the Finish Line – allows the Exceller Fund to work with local horse rescue organizations to transition horses to a second career after racing or breeding by acquiring horses that might be at risk for slaughter and caring for them until a new home is found. Its Web site provides a list of horses the Exceller Fund has adopted out or helped in other ways.

Barbara Kraus served as president of the Exceller Fund until 2003, when Bonnie Mizrahi, who had been in charge of fund-raising, took the reins. In August 2008, top New York trainer Gary Contessa was named president, a move that increased the organization’s visibility. “To have a major trainer such as Gary Contessa want to be our president and champion our efforts is a thrill and an honor,” Mizrahi said. “I believe this will signal to fans that racing does not turn a ‘blind eye’ to the horses once they are done, and I hope it will inspire others to realize that the Exceller Fund wants to work with racing to provide a “future beyond the finish line” for these magnificent Thoroughbreds.”

The Paulick Report will spotlight a different charity each day of Thanksgiving week, when we traditionally take time to reflect and give thanks to the blessings we have and to help those less fortunate. This is a difficult time for many Americans, and charitable organizations are feeling the effects of the global economic crisis. We hope you’ll spend a few minutes to learn about some of the charities that make us a better industry, and consider giving to these or to others that we won’t have the opportunity to publicize. Remember that no gift is too small.

Copyright © 2008, The Paulick Report

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Earlier this year when 46 Thoroughbreds from a California breeder’s farm wound up by deception at a feedlot in Arizona, their eventual destination likely to be a Mexican slaughterhouse, Priscilla Clark of Tranquility Farm in Tehachapi, Calif., stepped in. Working with a nationwide network of friends and supporters who helped raise awareness of the horses’ plight and, more importantly, the funds to buy them, Clark saved the Thoroughbreds from likely slaughter and within weeks found adoptive homes for nearly all of them.

Without Tranquility Farm, those horses would almost certainly have gone through a terrible ordeal ending with an undignified death, and in so doing tainting the Thoroughbred industry as one that discards its equine participants with little regard for their welfare.

Since 1998, the mission of Tranquility Farm, a 501(c)3 organization, has been to take in Thoroughbreds retired from racing or breeding and to either find them new homes, after rehabilitation and retraining, or give them a comfortable retirement whenever possible. The operation is based at the Harry A. Biszantz Memorial Center, developed on an abandoned horse farm located 120 miles north of Los Angeles. The center was made possible through the generosity of Thoroughbred owner and breeder Gary Biszantz, the former golf club manufacturer and owner of Cobra Farm whose dream was to create a horse sanctuary in honor of his late father. After Biszantz purchased the property, donations came in from a variety of sources throughout the industry to help build new barns, fencing and training facilities.

The current horse population at Tranquility numbers about 100 and includes millionaires, stakes performers and many fan favorites. Click here to see its roster of retirees. Because it cannot accommodate every retired racehorse, the farm prioritizes its adoptees by their racing or breeding accomplishments. Owners are requested but not required to contribute sponsorship funds to defray costs, which exceed $250,000 on an annual basis.

Clark, who has bred and raced Thoroughbreds for many years, serves as Tranquility Farm’s president. She is supported by a board of directors of knowledgeable and influential California racing industry participants.

Click here to find the different ways you can support Tranquility Farm, though one of its most popular fund-raising efforts is its annual calendar. The 2009 calendar, “In the Presence of Champions,” includes such stars as Big Brown, Zenyatta, War Chant, Nashoba’s Key, Lethal Heat, Street Boss, Golden Doc A and Colonel John. Click here to order a copy.

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I always subscribed to the theory that you can’t tell a book by its cover. For that reason, I was always impressed but never really that surprised when one of the grumpiest people I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with also turned out to be one of the most charitably minded.

Today, on this day of giving thanks, instead of focusing on an equine charity, the Paulick Report is writing about someone in the equine industry who has been a tireless champion for a charity that anyone who’s ever heard ringing bells outside of a grocery store is familiar with: the Salvation Army. 

I first met Ron Mitchell when we were colleagues at the Thoroughbred Times in 1988. Ron was all business, someone who learned the ins and outs of the horse world working at a bloodstock agency before entering the journalism profession. Like many journalists working at trade publications, Ron always seemed to know more about a story than he could write. Maybe that’s why he always seemed so grumpy!

I left the Times in 1991 to work for the startup daily paper, The Racing Times, and Ron shifted his notebook to the Bloodhorse magazine shortly thereafter. We were reunited in 1992 when I was named chief editor of the latter publication.

During my 15 years there, Ron had his responsibilities shifted at various times. He always accepted each new challenge with the same stern face and gruff attitude, then dove into his position with great dedication and a sense of pride and ownership for what he was doing.

It’s that same sense of pride, combined with a belief in social responsibility toward his community, that has driven Ron (pictured, Vickie Mitchell photo) to stand outside a Lexington, Ky., grocery store hours at a time several days a week during the holiday season over the last 15 years, ringing a bell and encouraging people to donate to the Salvation Army kettle. He says he does it because it’s always been a great source of news tips from people in the Thoroughbred industry who shop at the Kroger grocery store in his Chevy Chase neighborhood. But I’ve never believed that.

Just as his career in journalism has been transformed from manual typewriters to laptops and a black and white newsweekly tabloid to a 24/7 Internet site, Ron’s methodology for raising money for the Salvation Army has gone digital.

Be assured that your generous donations will be put to good use. As Ron said of the Salvation Army: “I did extensive research on charities and concluded that the SA does the most with the least. They do not fritter away their money on high-paid executives and they have a program that emphasizes assisting their clients with personal self-improvement and trying to get them back on their feet. The SA is not a ‘handout’ organization. Although they are not considered an ‘equine charity,’ many current and former workers within the Bluegrass horse industry utilize the many services offered by the SA."

If you can’t make it to Ron’s Kroger in Lexington, consider a donation to your local Salvation Army bell ringer. Better yet, go online to Ron Mitchell’s personal Salvation Army fundraising page and click on Ron’s "Donate to My Kettle" button to make a donation there.

You might even coax a rare smile out of him!

The Paulick Report will spotlight a different charity each day of Thanksgiving week, when we traditionally take time to reflect and give thanks to the blessings we have and to help those less fortunate. This is a difficult time for many Americans, and charitable organizations are feeling the effects of the global economic crisis. We hope you’ll spend a few minutes to learn about some of the charities that make us a better industry, and consider giving to these or to others that we won’t have the opportunity to publicize. Remember that no gift is too small.

Copyright © 2008, The Paulick Report

Visit the Paulick Report for all the latest news throughout the racing world. 

Sign up for our Email Flashes to get the latest news, analysis and commentary from Ray Paulick

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These aren’t self-portraits or Impressionist interpretations of haystacks but colorful expressions by some of your favorite horses (A.P. Indy’s work is pictured here). The annual collection is called “Moneigh” artwork, which came by combining the name of the  famous artist, Monet, along with the neighing sound a horse makes. The horses create the art works (with help from volunteers) using their muzzle, tail and hooves.

A 501(c)3 organization, ReRun was founded in Kentucky in 1996 and now has additional locations in New Jersey and New York. ReRun’s volunteer directors understand that not every ex-racehorse can adapt to a second career, but each one that is saved from neglect or slaughter is considered a success. To read a New York Times profile on ReRun from earlier this year, click here. The organization was also featured in June on the NBC Nightly News. Click here to view the video.

The Moneigh art auction began Nov. 23 and will close this Sunday, Nov. 30. Click here to visit the Moneigh auction on eBay.

To learn more about ReRun, read their most recent newsletter, ReViews, by clicking here.

The Paulick Report will spotlight a different charity each day of Thanksgiving week, when we traditionally take time to reflect and give thanks to the blessings we have and to help those less fortunate. This is a difficult time for many Americans, and charitable organizations are feeling the effects of the global economic crisis. We hope you’ll spend a few minutes to learn about some of the charities that make us a better industry, and consider giving to these or to others that we won’t have the opportunity to publicize. Remember that no gift is too small.

Copyright © 2008, The Paulick Report

Visit the Paulick Report for all the latest news throughout the racing world. 

The Belmont Child Care Association (BCCA) was established in 1998 to provide on-site care for the pre-school children of working families at New York-area racetracks and to provide funds for those families unable to afford the cost of care. It was formed at the initiative of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association.

A 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation, BCCA has benefited from the support of the New York Racing Association, Jockey Club and other organizations, but the construction of Anna House, the facility constructed on Belmont Park property leased for $1 a year, would not have been possible without the generosity of numerous individuals. Foremost among those are Michael Dubb, a Long Island developer and philanthropist who brought construction oversight and vision to the project and serves as BCCA’s board chairman, and Eugene and Laura Melnyk, who donated $1 million to kick off the capital campaign.

As anyone in the Thoroughbred industry knows, work days start early and can run seven days a week. Conventional day-care is not an option for many backstretch employees because of the cost or the hours the services are needed. Anna House, open 365 days a year from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m., provides a wonderful opportunity for the youngest children of backstretch workers to be cared for in a safe, nurturing and stimulating, learning environment.

An annual highlight for the Belmont Child Care Association is coming up on Dec. 13, when a special shopping event gives the children of Anna House a chance to be a gift-giver. Donated gifts, such as toys and clothing for infants, toddlers and teenagers, and books and adult clothing (warm clothing preferred) are set up at Anna House as a “store.” Children arriving at the facility have an opportunity to chat with Santa Claus, and with the help of a volunteer create a shopping list for their family. They then pick out their presents, which are wrapped and tagged by Santa’s volunteer helpers for Christmas delivery.

Last year, more than 350 children shopped for their families, and even more are expected this year.

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The dispute that’s prevented out-of-state horseplayers from betting on Hollywood Park races through account wagering or advance deposit wagering (ADW) companies is about money, of course. Isn’t it always? The same issues shut down account wagering on Churchill Downs, Calder Race Course and other tracks earlier this year.

No one who’s been paying attention to the hot-button issue of revenue distribution of account wagering dollars can say they didn’t see this coming.

Thoroughbred Owners of California has drawn a line in the sand against the ADWs, saying they deserve a more equitable share of ADW revenue from wagers made both in California and out-of-state. As more dollars shift from on-track or traditional simulcast locations to ADWs, the TOC claims, horsemen are getting a smaller slice of the action to fund purses. “We’ve been saying it for years, and the time is finally here,” said TOC president Drew Couto. “We’re not going to consent (to previous agreements).”

Horsemen’s associations have the contractual right through the federal Interstate Horse Racing Act to withhold simulcast or account wagering. However, it wasn’t until the creation last year of the Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Group, which assists local horsemen’s organizations with ADW contract negotiations in at least 17 states, that horsemen began to aggressively exercise that right. TOC helped create THG and Couto serves as vice president of the new organization. THG acts in a similar capacity to the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), which negotiates and collects licensing fees on the use of copyrighted music created by its members.

While the dispute involves four ADW companies, the most vocal critic of TOC and THG is David Nathanson, president of TVG, the leading horse racing cable channel and largest ADW company. Since the Hollywood Park fall meeting began Wednesday, TVG has used its television and online platforms to urge fans to contact TOC with their complaints.

“The TOC decision is bad for everyone involved in horseracing,” TVG president David Nathanson said in a statement. “Purses are being cut. Horsemen will lose money. Hollywood Park will lose revenue. Worst of all, this action hurts the fans when the industry needs them the most.”

Hollywood Park already has announced purse cuts.

Couto sees it differently. “We’re trying to build a model where everyone can prosper,” he said. “(TVG) didn’t listen to us for seven years because we weren’t working with other groups. Now they are listening because they don’t have a choice.”

Couto presented a detailed report on ADW wagering and revenue distribution during a meeting of the California Horse Racing Board in mid-October that showed how revenue to both in- and out-of-state horsemen and tracks is being squeezed with the growth of account wagering. “Up to about 72% of ADW revenues are retained by ADW companies, and overall about 50% is retained by those four companies,” Couto said. “We don’t believe that’s equitable or in the best long-term interest of the industry.”

TVG disagrees with Couto’s assessment of the distribution share that TVG has been paying, saying that it paid 67% to tracks and horsemen on wagers made during the 2008 Hollywood Park spring meeting.

Complicating matters in the current ADW dispute is what many see as a conflict of interest with Hollywood Park president Jack Liebau, who also serves as chairman of the board of Youbet, one of the four ADW companies involved in contract talks. Hollywood Park is expected to close next year, so some question whether or not Liebau is concerned more with the profitability of Youbet than he is with Hollywood Park. However, Couto has said Youbet and Magna Entertainment’s Xpressbet have engaged in good-faith negotiations. TVG and TwinSpires, the ADW platform owned by Churchill Downs, have not, he said.

“We are on our seventh version of a model that would assure ADW companies of content for the next three years at slightly higher rates than they currently pay,” said Couto “The rates do escalate if ADW handle grows by 20% over three consecutive quarters. That recognizes that the ADWs incur no incremental cost in growth.”

Nathanson insists that TOC is turning down a deal that would bring horsemen and the tracks $500,000 more in revenue than they received in 2007. “The only reason they are withholding the signal,” he said, “is to benefit this out-of-state horsemen’s consortium (THG). It doesn’t make economic sense. We are ready and willing to sit side by side and face to face any time to resolve these issues. Ultimately these need to be rational decisions as opposed to decisions that aren’t in the best interest of their own constituency.”

Couto flatly rejects Nathanson’s contention. In a letter to TOC members posted on the organization’s Web site, Couto wrote: “To the contrary, CA Thoroughbred interests would have received over $165,000 more from TVG alone, and over $633,000 from all four licensed ADW providers during the spring meet alone! Over the entire calendar year, North and South, that adds up to millions more in purse revenues for California owners! “

“We have cut back on our Hollywood Park coverage,” Nathanson said. “We are showing 100% of Hollywood Park’s races, but when you are cutting off a large chunk of the revenue we can’t afford to send a full-fledged crew down there to do special shows. We had to eliminate the popular All-Access show because of this.”

“Nathanson is misleading people,” Couto said. “He’s saying let’s make one group happy and screw the rest. We had no success getting higher rates with the TVGs of the world. We got together, shared information, took it back to our boards and said, ‘Here’s what we’ve learned.’ Our boards individually said, ‘We’re getting screwed.’ The only way we can get the TVGs of the world to change is for us to say,’Enough is enough.’

“These guys have had seven years to work with each of the horsemen’s associations,” Couto added. “They created the situation, and yes, horsemen are saying we are going to solve this once and for all for everybody, so we can move on, so this industry can get healthy again.”

 Copyright © 2008, The Paulick Report

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