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​NYRA Cares: Elmont/Belmont parade shaping up as extra special

by NYRA Press Office

There are several reasons why this year’s version of the Elmont/Belmont Parade, which serves as the traditional kickoff to the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, is shaping up as extra special.

Following its cancellation in 2020 and continued adjustments in 2021 due to COVID-19, this year’s parade will return to its traditional route down Hempstead Turnpike before culminating at Belmont Park. For the first time since 2019, hundreds of marchers will then participate in a community celebration to include live music and a variety of performances.

The 14th annual Elmont/Belmont Parade on June 4 will once again be named in honor of Paul Sapienza, who passed away unexpectedly in December of 2020. Sapienza was the President of the Elmont Chamber of Commerce and longtime owner of Sapienza’s Bake Shop, the beloved Italian pastry shop a few furlongs from Belmont Park.

“Paul was just one of a kind, a fixture in this community,” said Pat Boyle, the executive director of the Elmont-based Gateway Youth Outreach. “He was the kind of guy who would step in and do anything for Elmont. It’s altogether fitting that we honor his memory as a community every year.”

The parade also marks what Boyle called another step forward toward, “the new normal” – a return to its traditional 1 1/4-mile route culminating at Belmont Park with a community celebration. The parade will kick off at 10 a.m. from the parking lot of the Alva T. Stanforth Sports Complex and head west down Hempstead Turnpike, before making a sharp right turn through Gate 5 at Belmont.

Making the occasion even more memorable is this year’s Grand Marshal: Chaplain Humberto Chavez of the New York Race Track Chaplaincy (NYRTCA). Based on the backstretch of Belmont Park, the chaplaincy has long been a critical community component in forging lasting ties between the track and the community.

“It’s an honor to be recognized at an event that celebrates the bond between Elmont and Belmont Park,” said Chavez. “We look forward to marching down Hempstead Turnpike together again, and I congratulate all the organizers of the Elmont/Belmont Parade and NYRA for their dedication to this wonderful event.”

At the track, NYRA will treat hundreds of marchers to lunch in the Belmont Café. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, it will be the first time since 2019 that NYRA has been able to host the Elmont/Belmont participants, who are then invited to spend the day at the races.

Boyle said the parade draws about 600 marchers on average and will include members of Sapienza’s family, including his son, Andrew, who continues to run the bakery. Among the participants will be elected officials, local leaders, marching bands from Elmont public schools, members of the police and fire departments, youth organizations, NYRA employees and members of the racetrack community.

Individuals interested in marching in this year’s parade should assemble at 9:30 a.m. at parking lot of the Alva T. Stanforth Sports Complex at 700 Hempstead Turnpike, Elmont.

With the 154th running of the Grade 1, $1.5 million Belmont Stakes presented by NYRA Bets on Saturday, June 11 as its centerpiece, this year’s three-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival kicks off on Thursday, June 9 and will include 17 stakes races in total, with eight Grade 1 races to be contested on Belmont Stakes Day.

For additional information and details on hospitality offerings, ticket packages and pricing for the Belmont Stakes, visit BelmontStakes.com. For full terms and conditions, visit https://www.belmontstakes.com/tickets.

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Getting to know…Yasmar Sanchez

This month’s edition of Getting to know... visits with Yasmar Sanchez, who with the help of a scholarship grant from the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (NYTHA) became the first in her family to attend college. In May, she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Nuclear Medicine Technology from Molloy College.

In doing so, Sanchez becomes another success story among the 590 students to have received NYTHA scholarship grants. Since 2008, the program has distributed more than $2 million in grants for scholarships as well as transportation and books to backstretch workers and their immediate dependents.

Sanchez, whose father Raymundo is a foreman for trainer John Kimmel, also works as an Assistant Teacher at Anna House, the Belmont Park childcare and early childhood education facility for backstretch families. She and her family live near Belmont Park in Elmont.

“Yasmar’s achievements are measured by her outstanding educational accomplishments and her dedication to our children,” said Joanne K. Adams, the Executive Director of the Belmont Child Care Association, which raises the funds to provide scholarships for the children and oversees the operation of Anna House and Faith’s House along with its child care provider, Bright Horizons. “Yasmar has a true gift in the way she is able to connect with our children and she has a real understanding of how to motivate them. We are so fortunate to have her with us at Anna House.”

Why volunteer on the backstretch?

It’s giving back. When my family arrived in the U.S. from Mexico, the backstretch community reached out to help us. I understand these children – and now, it’s my turn to help them.

Describe the kind of help you received on arriving in the U.S.

 My dad has been working at the tracks in New York for more 20 years. I was 13 when my mom and younger brother, Ryan, moved from Mexico to Elmont. Later that month, I started ninth grade at Elmont Memorial High School without knowing a lot of English. But I learned. And all the time, my parents always stressed education, and the Belmont community was there as well, making sure our family was looked after. It’s a real community on the backstretch.

When did you start volunteering?

During summers when I was in high school, I worked at the Race Track Chaplaincy, helping in the office and with the weekly food drives. For the past three years, I’ve been at Anna House, filling in for teachers with the infants and toddlers.

I really enjoy it. I can see not really having much time to work with the kids. But I’ll make my schedule work. It’s that important to me.

What do you feel that you can offer the children at Anna House?

I grew up in a backstretch family, which gives me an appreciation for the challenges faced by the children. Days for their parents begin at dawn, so the children arrive extra early. And because the days can run long as well, it’s important that teachers adjust their own schedules and be available to help with homework and so forth.

So, where do you go from here?

With my degree, I want to become a dentist. I still have a long road ahead: I need to prepare for the Dental Admission Test and apply for and attend dental school. But I’m motivated and want to start a practice that would take in backstretch people.

For more information on Anna House, see https://www.belmontchildcare.org/anna-house

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In the community

Nominations are open for the Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards

Nominations are now open for the seventh annual Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards (TIEA), presented by Godolphin, which recognize and reward the outstanding talent, diligence, and commitment of the farm and racing stable staff who are at the heart of our sport.

There are seven award categories, with three finalists recognized in six of the categories and a total of $122,000 in prize money awarded.

To learn more and to nominate your candidate, please visit tiea.org. The deadline for nominations is Friday, July 15, 2022.

TRF’s Barbecue at the Barn returns!

 One of the most anticipated events of the summer, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation’s Barbeque at the Barn, will return as an in-person event in 2022 and will be held at the beautiful Saratoga Winery on Tuesday, August 23 from 5:00-9:00 p.m.

In addition to a delicious meal (with a vegetarian option!), the event will feature family friendly activities, music, raffle and silent auction items along with special guests.

For more information, please visit https://www.trfinc.org/event/bbq-2022/.

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A helping hand…

The New York Race Track Chaplaincy (NYRTCA) Girls Teen Mentoring Program is growing. Those interested in serving as a mentor, are asked to email Karen Chavez [[email protected]] for further information.

The NYRTCA is also in need of volunteers to assist with the pickup and drop-off of food donations on Wednesdays in the area around Belmont Park. For further information, please email Karen Chavez.

About NYRA Cares

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA), which holds the exclusive franchise to conduct thoroughbred racing at Aqueduct Racetrack, Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course, sponsors its NYRA Cares initiative to support the charitable endeavors of industry-related non-profits, service providers and community groups.

In New York, NYRA has long provided sustaining financial contributions to deepen the impact of the Backstretch Employee Service Team (BEST), the Racetrack Chaplaincy of New York and the Belmont Child Care Association (BCCA).

NYRA Cares partners with national organizations such as the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, the American Red Cross, Ronald McDonald House Charities and the Marine Corps Toys for Tots Program among others.

The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival is marked by a number of special events and community partnerships sponsored and supported by NYRA. These include the annual Belmont/Elmont Parade, the jockey visit to the Ronald McDonald House of Long Island and the Belmont Stakes Blue Ribbon Run for Prostate Cancer.

At historic Saratoga Race Course, NYRA Cares’ signature initiative is the Community Outreach Booth, which each season highlights a total of 40 local and industry non-profit organizations by providing them with a unique platform to share information about their work and fundraising initiatives. One non-profit per day of the summer racing season receives the exclusive opportunity to interact with the thousands of guests who visit Saratoga Race Course. The Community Partner of the Day is also featured in the Post Parade racing program and on televisions throughout the venue.

To learn more about NYRA Cares, visit: https://www.nyrainc.com/community.