Charity
Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation
Saving Horses, Saving Lives
Founded in 1983, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation’s mission is clear and simply stated: To save Thoroughbred horses no longer able to compete on the racetrack from possible neglect, abuse and slaughter.
Belmont Child Care Association / Anna House
Thoroughbred Retirement Farms
The crown jewel of the Belmont Child Care Association programs is Anna House, a full scale childcare and early childhood education facility located at Belmont Park. Located within Gate 6 at Belmont Park in Elmont, NY, it is easily accessible to employees of both Belmont and Aqueduct Racetrack. Its unique location, predawn opening, and weekend hours make it the ideal, and often only, affordable childcare option for backstretch families. They are currently building a new facility in Saratoga. Our own Brian Spagnola and Jason Brinkman currently sit on the Saratoga Committee.
Old Friends
Thoroughbred Retirement Farms
In a little more than a decade Old Friends, the Thoroughbred Retirement Facility in Georgetown, KY, has put a new face on the concept of equine aftercare. Founded in 2003 by former Boston Globe film critic Michael Blowen, the organization has grown from a leased paddock and one horse to a 136-acre farm, a herd of over 175 rescued and retired horses, and two satellite facilities: Old Friends at Cabin Creek in Greenfield Center, NY, and Old Friends at Kentucky Downs in Franklin, KY.
Blowen had long believed that horses past their prime could still be valuable – money-earning, even—if the venue was right. And so Old Friends tested the concept by opening its doors to the public, inviting fans to revisit their turf heroes. Now a “living-history museum of horse racing”, the farm attracts nearly 20,000 visitors annually who come to swoon over such American Grade 1 winners as Breeders’ Cup Champions Amazombie, Little Mike and Alphabet Soup, Belmont Stakes winners Sarava and Touch Gold, and three-time Santa Anita Handicap winner Game On Dude. The farm is also home to Kentucky Derby and Preakness champions Silver Charm and War Emblem, each repatriated from stud duties overseas.
Backstretch Employee Service Team (BEST)
Healthcare and wellness services for those who care for the horses
BEST is a nonprofit organization that is devoted to meeting the health and social welfare needs of the several thousand barn area (“backstretch”) workers of the Aqueduct, Belmont, and Saratoga racetracks by providing on-site counseling and primary healthcare services, access to health insurance, and case management assistance.
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