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Too often we forget to say thank
you for giving back. The following small praises for big deeds
should not be overlooked.
Often hailed as the nicest jockey in racing,
Richard Migliore shows his class and compassion despite being
injured. Hats off to him.
To Kate Miller for her watchful eye and devotion to
Keystone Wallis. The 23 year old barren Standardbred mare
found her way to auction after a long broodmare career where she was
purchased as a save by Kate. With help from some good/new friends,
Keystone Wallis will now live out her days with Dr. Patty Hogan, who is
always in line for well deserved "Yeahs!" To all of you, from all
of us who are silently and not so silently saying it, thank you.
You have made it Merry Christmas all year.
To
Castleton Lyons Farm for their generous donation of 5% of Gio
Ponti's earnings to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. The
accomplished colt has helped contribute just over $29K to the fund.
To
Silverfoot owner Stephanie Clark for her generous donation of
the Tin Man Stakes winning purse to the fund assisting
injured rider Rene Douglas. Congratulations to the 9 year old
gelding! A salute to all of the rest of you have helped, the
jockeys who have signed autographs and more for donations, and the
countless others who have donated in whatever way they can to this
worthy cause. You can
send
an ecard to Rene or make a donation. To donate to Renee:
Please make checks payable to Rene Douglas and
mail to:
Rene Douglas
c/o Citibank
539 N. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611
To
Hal Wiggins for his exemplary training of Rachel Alexandra, the
foundation of her success.
To the connections of Mine That Bird, and to the swift
and agile running gelding himself.
If you haven't seen the blimp shot, it is
a sight to behold. No excuse is legitimate enough to deny the
ability of horse and rider to reach that wire from so far back that he
was, in the early stages, not included in the shot from above.
There is no denying these cowboys from New Mexico, who are far from
newcomers to the game (Quarter Horse great Go Man Go stood and is buried
at Buena Suerte Farm). Their astute of purchase of the Sovereign
Award 2 yo gelding did not assure victory but, for the determination and
the gamble to go forward, we salute them and trainer, Chip Woolley.
And...
who has done this in the past?
Kudos to Iain Holmes and his very important quest
to raise awareness for organ donation. Denise's Gift, who will
race for Bongo Stable, is a filly named for Denise Darvall who became
the world's first successful human heart donor. After being killed
in a 1967 auto accident, her organs saved the lives of both heart and
kidney recipients. Donation is often as simple as checking a box
on your drivers' license and can literally make the difference between
life and death. You can support
Denise's Gift on
facebook.
Determination and talent are the hallmarks of 15 year
old
Tyler Kaplan, aspiring to become and attain membership in the
top jockey ranks. Ride along with him at
tylerkaplan.com.
A man, an idea, and hope for Detroit's inner city children can
make all the difference in the world. James Buchanan's quest to
teach the heritage of the Buffalo Soldiers.
The very 1st Yeah of 2009 goes to Lou the mule, and
deservedly so. Lou created enough of a disturbance to
alert his owner to a house fire and save the day.
We can really never say thank you to them too often
so, once again, to T. Boone and Madeleine Pickens for their untiring
efforts to make this country right. In an unprecedented move, Mrs.
Pickens works with the Bureau of Land Management to reach a solution and
preserve our wild horses. Mr. Pickens spearheaded the
PickensPlan to
empower our country with self sufficient energy. Get familiar and
get on board. You'll be glad you did!
To the Tony Stewart Foundation, of well known
NASCAR driver, for the generous donation to the Friends of Ferdinand.
The grant will enable the establishment of "Tony's Ex-Racers" which will
be a number of Hoosier Park horses retired from racing.
To trainer Todd Pletcher (and this is not the
first time) for the generous donation of all of his stallion seasons to
the Thoroughbred Charities of America Stallion Season and Art Auction to
be held 12/5/08 at Keeneland.
When horse people work together: Siphonizer has
been claimed from a 4K race at Remington Park and retired to Old
Friends. A very special note of appreciation to Becky Witzman,
former assistant to Richard Mandella and HRTV producer who has kept a
watchful eye on the 2001 gelding. Through her contact and a
fortuitous chain of good people, money was put up by former owner Maggi
Moss, the claim was entered by trainer Steve Asmussen, transport was
provided by Eoin Harty, and a home was provided by Michael Blowen of Old
Friends. A temporary home for him has been provided by
Chestnut Farm until paddocks are completed at Old Friends.
To Jess Jackson and wife Barbara Banke for their
generous donation to Belmont's Anna House through
Curlin for Kids.
To members of the Thoroughbred community, those
actually respresented by NTRA, headlined by Josephine Abercrombie, for
their letter to Congress stating that they were opposed to the
slaughter of horses and staunchly in support of H.R. 6598, H.R. 503, and
S. 311, despite the statements of Alex Waldrop.
To Suffolk Downs who says what they mean and means
what they say:
Suffolk acts on slaughter policy
Remember
Alex's Lemonade Stand? During the 2005 Triple Crown it was
going strong and was present at tracks to help in the fight against
childhood cancer. Thanks to the efforts of many supporters, it is
still going strong!
To the New York State Task Force on Retired Race
Horses for the impetus to
conduct a survey in September and October which will investigate the
possibilities of exploring and expanding second careers for retired
horses.
To Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum for
purchasing and retiring 6 year old Watchtower (IRE), a horse sired
by his late and much loved Dubai Millennium. Watchtower has been
pensioned at the New England Thoroughbred Retirement Center.
To Mr. Hidetoshi Yamamoto, owner of Casino Drive, for his
generous
donation to Anna House at Belmont Park, benefiting the children of
the racing industry.
To Doug Matthews, owner/trainer of Gravano, 10yo
Pioneering gelding, who
ended his career of 103 starts with a win at Hawthorne.
Wanting to end his career on a a high note, Matthews "got him good
enough to win one more time" and retired him to Forest Preserve Stable,
IL, where he will become a trail horse.
To the Keeneland Foundation and Toyota Motor
Manufacturing for their
generous grant to the
Kentucky Equine Humane
Center to assist horses in need. It is always a pleasure to
say thank you to
Keeneland for their great work.
To Donald Williamson who, although mostly unrecognized in
his efforts, continues to keep a watchful eye on horses in need and
facilitates the connections for a happy ending.
To Karakorum Racing, running homebred Chernobyl's
Hero (2004 G) with contributions of one quarter of his earnings to the
Chernobyl
Children's Project International.
To Robin and Carolyn Hoffos who
claimed and retired the 8yo gelding Zayed. Zayed was
originally the Hoffos' first winner and he will now become a riding
horse. Congratulations!
To the
Finger Lakes
Thoroughbred Adoption Program and the track, donors and
volunteers for making the program a growing success. Based on the
grounds of Finger Lakes Gaming and Racetrack, a 12/30/07
article from MPNnow.com gives the details. Congratulations!
To Royce Clay for the
purchase and retirement of 26 year old Mepache, dam of Valid
Expectations.
Consigned to the February '07 Fasig-Tipton sale, Clay purchased the
mare pre-sale to assure her well deserved retirement.
To
Marsha Naify for her quest to locate,
claim, and retire horses owned or bred by her late
father Marshall Naify. Hats off to you, Marsha!
To all of those involved in
trying to save the not-so-famous Home Tour
following her Del Mar breakdown on 7/20/06.
To all of you unsung angels out
there! If you are involved
in horse rescue, the fight to end slaughter, or making
sure that retired horses find a new career or caring home,
this means you! The hours are long, the pay is
non-existent, but the rewards are endless. Thank
you!
And, maybe unrelated, but maybe not...
Hats off
to
Simon Pulsifer,
Wikipedia's most prolific contributor, in his unending
pursuit of knowledge!
Lastly, this is the very definition
of heart. The letters
CAN are never followed by T. Click on the film cell to
watch the incredible story of a father and son.
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