PDJF Names Joe Clabes As New Executive Director

Joe Clabes is the new Executive Director of the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund, the organization announced Monday. Clabes joins current PDJF President Nancy LaSala and will oversee “finance, technology, internal operations and controls along with disbursement of benefits to disabled jockeys.”

“We are thrilled to welcome Joe as the new Executive Director of the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund,” said William J. Punk, Jr, Chairperson of the PDJF Board of Directors. “Joe has strong leadership and management skills and is dedicated to supporting the needs of disabled jockeys.”

“I am honored to have the opportunity to serve the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund as Executive Director and assist the organization in taking the next steps in its evolution,” said Clabes. “I look forward to working closely with Nancy, the PDJF team, our partners, and the broader horse racing community to continue the important work of providing assistance and support to our permanently disabled jockeys.”

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New Revenue Record For Jockeys And Jeans All American Stallion Season Sale

The 2024 All American Thoroughbred Stallion Sale put on by Jockeys and Jeans raised a total of $95,550, the organization announced Friday. The proceeds, which will benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF), are a record for the sale which also included a record 48 seasons sold. Donations came from 32 farms across seven states and included 73 no-guarantee seasons purchased by 25 individual breeders.

“It was truly a community effort and one whose response proves racing is indeed a community; one that cares,” said Interim Jockeys and Jeans President Dr. Eddie Donnally who originated the season sale. “I believe that those blue-collar breeders in our industry represent racing's heartland. You're not likely to find them selling their yearlings in the Keeneland Select Sale, but like all breeders and stallion owners, they are holding on to hope; hope that their next foal will be a champion.”

“I believe I speak for the men and women who gave a big part of their lives beneath the horses we all know and love and directly benefit from this sale when I say we hope and pray every mating produces a genuine runner. Those severely injured jockeys and I, and every member of our committee, profusely thank each donor and buyer. They made a lot of difference in a lot of lives.”

PDJF Board President Nancy LaSala added: “On behalf of the men and women the PDJF serves, we are most grateful to the breeders who have supported this auction and the time and effort of the Jockeys and Jeans Committee to make this a successful fundraiser.”

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’40 Days Of Giving’ Beneficiaries Speak Up: ‘For Us, It’s Personal’

The Breeders' Cup is in the midst of its “40 Days of Giving” program that puts key Thoroughbred industry charities in a collective spotlight with a fundraising twist: This year's initiative involves a money-matching effort in which donors selected by each charity will match up to $1,000 raised by the general public on that charity's designated day. On the final day of the drive, the Breeders' Cup itself will match up to $20,000 in donations, with funds raised on that 40th day to be distributed evenly to all participating charities.

“It's the lead-up to the 40th running of the Breeders' Cup championships. So we're taking 40 days and 11 different charities, and we're trying to raise as much money as possible for all of these charities that are doing incredible work within our industry,” said Stefanie Palmieri, the vice president of events for Breeders' Cup, Ltd. “And the idea behind the match is that we can engage the public knowing that if they donate, there's a potential for their donations to be doubled.”

The charities that will benefit are the California Thoroughbred Horsemen's Foundation, the  Ed Brown Society, the Edwin J. Gregson Foundation, The Foundation for the Horse, the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF), the Race Track Chaplaincy of America, The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation, the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA) in partnership with the California Retirement Management Account, and the Winners Foundation.

“We started on Sept. 21, and the last day of the match program is Oct. 30,” Palmieri said. “But all of the links to donate will remain open through all of the Nov. 3-4 Breeders' Cup races so we can continue promoting and drive as many donations as possible.

“So far, we have hit our matches on quite a few of those days. I think people are really interested and engaged with it,” Palmieri said. “The program is really designed to support a variety of different causes within the Thoroughbred industry, and we selected the charities to represent a cross-section of focus areas.”

Two points stood out when TDN spoke with executives of some of the charities that the Breeders' Cup selected to participate. The first is that our sport operates differently than others in that it relies on a multitude of industry-facing organizations to keep the game going on a daily basis. The second is that most of these worthy causes generally have to compete for the same relatively small pool of Thoroughbred-supportive donors.

Yet those who run the charities say they welcome this opportunity to have so many good causes featured together under one fundraising umbrella, because a program like 40 Days of Giving raises not only money, but the profiles of everyone involved.

Jockeys heading to the paddock | Coady Photography

“When an organization like the Breeders' Cup says they're going to dedicate weeks of bringing awareness to the charities, we're obviously thrilled,” said Shannon Kelly, the executive director of The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation. “And I always have felt the Breeders' Cup should be the moment we're promoting our industry's charities, because all eyes are on the Breeders' Cup.”

Since 1985, The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation has operated as a charitable trust that provides, on a confidential basis, financial relief to needy members of the Thoroughbred industry and their families. Its assistance recipients range from jockeys, trainers, exercise riders, and grooms to office personnel and other employees of tracks, racing organizations, and breeding farms.

“Obviously, the Breeders' Cup has a huge platform to promote the work of charities,” Kelly continued. “They have a lot of eyes and followers. A lot of charities like us in the industry, we have small staffs and we're working quietly as best as we can. So having an arm like the Breeders' Cup's marketing arm push this is fantastic. And I think it's just a nice way to show they're dedicated. It gives us a boost, some traction to what we do.”

“The reality is we're all asking the same donors,” Kelly said. “We're a small industry. So I think it's good to make it a collective program, and not everyone on their own going after the same donors. I think it makes it a little bit easier from a fundraising perspective.”

Nancy LaSala has been the PDJF's president since its inception in 2006, and she accepted the dual role of executive director three years later. The PDJF provides financial assistance to some 60 former jockeys who have suffered catastrophic on-track accidents, most of which involve paralysis or traumatic brain injury. She said that although each specific charity focuses on its niche, they all fall into broader categories that she likened to three-legged stool that needs even support to remain standing.

“We need to care of our human athlete. We need to take care of our equine athlete. And we need to take care of our racing community infrastructure, which is basically the backside. If we could support those three bases, I look at them as the three prominent prongs of horse racing,” LaSala said.

“I don't think our donor base resides much outside of racing,” LaSala said. “It's nice to be part of a platform that includes so many industry charities. We very seldom get the chance to do that, for the greater benefit of all.”

TAA saddle towel | Coady Photography

Stacie Clark Rogers has been with the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance since its inception in 2012, and has been the organization's operations consultant since 2014. The TAA accredits, inspects, and awards grants to more than 80 approved aftercare organizations at around 180 facilities to retrain, retire, and rehome Thoroughbreds using industry-wide funding.

“As the official aftercare charity of the Breeders' Cup, we're always happy to be included in the event and to have the recognition for all the 80-plus organizations that we have,” Clark Rogers said. “It's the one time where we can help them raise some attention for aftercare on the national and international level. It's really inclusive that they've had so many charities be a part of this. It's great to have such a community spirit with the Breeders' Cup.

Palmieri said the Breeders' Cup left it up to each charity to select their own donors who are providing the matching incentives.

“I like the idea of choosing our match donor because it's helped me identify some people that we wanted to draw attention to,” Kelly said. “I went for people who support us throughout the year and are always looking to support more, and I think it gives them some publicity as being actively involved in supporting the industry, not just owning horses or breeding horses or whatever their business is. I think it's good promotion for them, too, to say we have some really good people and groups that want to help.

“We're a really unique industry, because not a lot of other big sports have in-house charities,” Kelly said. “Our charities are there for the future of the sport, to keep it moving. For us, it's personal.”

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PDJF Telethon Raises Over $300,000

The fifth annual PDJF Telethon, presented by Lane's End Farm, raised over $300,000 for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund Apr. 23. Since the inaugural telethon in 2018, over $1.5 million has been raised to support jockeys who have suffered serious on-track injuries.

“When everyone in the sport comes together, good things can happen,” said Kevin Grigsby, FanDuel TV executive producer. “We are grateful to our industry partners at Keeneland, Santa Anita and NYRA for their collaborative efforts to make this event a success. We are proud of all that we have raised so far but know the work is not done–we are already looking ahead to next year's telethon.”

“Being a part of this event is a great honor,” said Mike Joyce, a board member of the PDJF and on-air host at FanDuel TV. “I want to personally thank every single person who took time to donate to this worthwhile cause. No matter how large or small a donation, each one is so important.”

There were donations from supporters across the country including major donations from Jim McIngvale, Lee Einsidler, Vince Foglia and Lane's End Farm. In addition, FanDuel matched all donations up to $100,000.

“We are grateful to everyone who has been supportive of the annual telethon that has made it a success for the PDJF,” said Nancy LaSala, PDJF Board President. “It also allows the jockeys from the past and present to connect with the racing fans in a very personal way. This would not be possible without the platform provided by FanDuel TV who from the beginning supported this concept.”

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