New York Race Track Chaplaincy launches matching gift campaign for its food pantry

by NY Division of Race Track Chaplaincy of America

Program benefits backstretch workers at Belmont Park impacted by COVID-19

The New York Race Track Chaplaincy of America has launched a matching gift drive for its food pantry that will benefit backstretch workers at Belmont Park as they deal with the many challenges posed by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Donations to the food pantry made between now and June 6 will be matched up to $25,000 by a member of the New York Racing Association (NYRA) Board of Directors. That gives the Chaplaincy the potential to raise up to $50,000 for its pantry, one of the few in the area around Belmont Park that is still open during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Financial donations can be made online at flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/Nzc5ODQ=. The Chaplaincy is also accepting donations of food. For more information about what to donate and the drop-off location, contact  [email protected] or text 516-428-5267.

And please take a look at this video (https://vimeo.com/405173998) in which Terry Finley of West Point Thoroughbreds and retired Hall of Fame jockey Ramón Dominguez, the Chairman and President respectively of the New York Race Track Chaplaincy of America; as well as President of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA) Joe Appelbaum and NYRA board member Marc Holliday, discuss the pressing need for donations during the coronavirus (COVID19) pandemic.

"We've seen skyrocketing demand for our food pantry program and we need help in order to meet these needs," said Chaplain Humberto Chavez, who heads the New York Race Track Chaplaincy of America. "It's often at the most challenging times, when a lot of good people are facing hardship, that our racing community comes together."

All donations to the food pantry are distributed to backstretch workers and their families at Belmont Park, where training has continued since the cancelation of live racing on March 19 at Aqueduct Racetrack. The Aqueduct spring meet set, which had been set to run through April 19, has also been canceled.

The New York Chaplaincy's food pantry has become a critical lifeline for backstretch workers and their families during the pandemic. Because of the health crisis and the cancelation of racing, requests for food have increased dramatically - and according to Chaplain Chavez, "we need help in order to meet these needs."