For more than 32 years, Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) has been on a mission “to fund and facilitate the support of Thoroughbreds and the people who care for them.” The grant-making organization has distributed more than $26 million to more than 200 Thoroughbred-related non-profits. The TAKE2 Second Career Thoroughbred Program is proud to be a TCA donee.
TAKE2 was awarded its first TCA grant in 2016, and has been a recipient every year since. In recognition of all it does for the organization and for the Thoroughbred industry overall, TCA has been named the TAKE2 “Donor of the Month” for October.
The TCA funding provided to TAKE2 has helped to expand second career opportunities for retired racehorses in the show ring, and has assisted in placing nearly 1,000 horses from the New York Racing Association tracks through TAKE2's sister program TAKE THE LEAD. These initiatives align perfectly with the TCA mission statement.
“TCA helps both horses and humans,” TCA Executive Director Erin Halliwell said. “We support health and social services for the backstretch and farm workers, and we also focus a lot of our efforts on aftercare. It's important to fund not only those organizations that take the horses from the track for rehabilitation, retraining and rehoming, but also to help the groups like TAKE2 that are actively working to create a market and demand for off-the-track Thoroughbreds among sport horse enthusiasts. Organizations like TAKE2 are a vital part of the equation.”
Over the last 10 years, the racing industry has become increasingly aware of the need to provide for Thoroughbreds even after their racing careers are over.
“Aftercare wasn't even a word 15 years ago,” Halliwell said. “It is a relatively new term in the racing lexicon. There's no doubt there is more work to be done, but it is staggering the progress we have made in the last decade. The Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance has had a huge impact on racehorse retirement. Incentive programs like the Retired Racehorse Project, the Thoroughbred Incentive Program and TAKE2 are making incredible strides. The opportunities for retired racehorses and the value of off-the-track Thoroughbreds is trending up, and that's what we want to see.”
The seeds for TCA were first planted in 1990 by a group of racehorse owners in the Mid-Atlantic that included Herb Moelis, who passed away earlier this month, his wife Ellen, and the late Allaire DuPont. What started as a yearly dinner and auction of art and racing memorabilia at the Moelis' Candyland Farm in Delaware grew to include the annual Stallion Season Auction and, when the funds raised from the Stallion Season Auction closed in on $1 million in 1997, TCA was launched. It is now the charitable arm of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA) and offers supporters a way to give to one organization while helping many.
“We're stronger together,” Halliwell said. “We see that in aftercare. There is so much collaboration and cooperation, we share ideas and experience. That's the kind of effort we need to push our mission forward.”
Help TAKE2 Celebrate 10 Years of Supporting Retired Racehorses!
Join the Cause: With the generous help of donors Len Green and the Green Group, Patricia Hurter, Kyle Emmich, NYTB/NYSTBDF, Michael Sternklar, and TERF, TAKE2's “Perfect 10” campaign has already raised $78,172, ahead of our goal of raising $10,000 a month for 10 months in celebration of our 10th Anniversary. We encourage members of the Thoroughbred Horse Racing, Show Horse and Sport Horse communities to follow our supporters' lead and honor the anniversary with donations of any size.
Post on Social Media: Throughout the campaign, TAKE2 will feature donors and surprise celebrity ambassadors on our social media platforms. All owners of retired racehorses turned hunter/jumpers are also invited to share photos of their horses on TAKE2's FaceBook, Twitter and Instagram accounts with the hashtag #TAKE2Happy10th.
To Make a Donation: Click here to make a donation today! You can also donate by texting HAPPY10TH! to 44321.
TCA's mission is to fund and facilitate the support of Thoroughbreds and the people who care for them. TCA distributes grants to several categories of Thoroughbred-related nonprofits including rehabilitation, retraining, rehoming and retirement organizations; backstretch and farm employee programs; equine-assisted therapy programs; and research organizations. Since its inception in 1990, TCA has granted over $26 million to more than 200 charities. TCA also administers the Horses First Fund, a fund started by LNJ Foxwoods in 2016 to provide emergency aid for Thoroughbreds in need. TCA is the charitable arm of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA).
The TAKE2 Second Career Thoroughbred Program was the brainchild of then New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA) President Rick Violette Jr. NYTHA partnered with the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc. (NYTB) in 2012 to launch TAKE2, with the goal of creating more second career opportunities and making it easier to find new homes for retired racehorses. TAKE2 sponsors awards and prize money in Thoroughbred Hunter and Jumper divisions and supports Thoroughbred aftercare initiatives nationwide. The program has expanded quickly, from eight shows in three states in its first year to more than 370 horse shows in 23 states in 2021. To date, more than 2,000 Thoroughbreds have participated in the TAKE2 Program. A 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, TAKE2 is co-funded by members of the Thoroughbred industry around the country: New York Thoroughbred Breeding and Development Fund; Thoroughbred Horsemen's Associations in Illinois (through Galloping Out), Maryland (through Beyond the Wire), and Pennsylvania (through Turning for Home); and Ocala Breeders' Sales Company. TAKE2 is a 2021 TCA grantee. For more information, go to www.take2tbreds.com.
The post TAKE2 Donor Of The Month: TCA Is One Organization Helping Many appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
