Page 10 - November 2008 The Game

10 The Game, November 2008 Thanks... for Giving
There are few groups that I know of that are more giving than race track- ers. Many a person has been helped, of cially and unof cially, by members of this tight community. By of cially, I mean the times when a fund raiser has been held for the well-being of some- one who has been injured, whether on the track or off. I’ve been privileged
to have been a part of many events,
HORSE RACING Trips Worldwide
regardless of the track, that were orchestrated to help out speci c needs of some part of our track family. Unof- cially are those times day in and day out when someone taps you for a few bucks to hold them over. I’ve given up on lending money- I don’t want to look at a person and see them as someone owing me. If I can, I just give it and hope they can pay it forward.
We’ve just passed the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday and last month
I focused on having an attitude of gratitude. I think we’re tremendously fortunate to live in this country and on more than one occasion, I’ve need to be reminded as such. Our neighbors to the south celebrate their Thanksgiving a little later, (followed by an orgy-like day of shopping unbeknownst to this side of the 49th), and when I lived in the U.S. I found it tended to blur the lines of Christmas and Thanksgiving. This month I want to look at the “giv- ing” side of Thanksgiving. As men- tioned earlier, race trackers as a whole are givers. But sometimes we get so caught up in the day to day happen- ings of horse racing that we fail to look beyond the Racing Form. Given the opportunity, however, they can unleash a volley of goodwill that puts them, (in my mind), in the league of philanthro-
Canada’s Thoroughbred Racing Newspaper
Get Tied On
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nothing. This is a great opportunity
to do something with your own kids that gets them in a world mindset. Last year, Danny and I went to the Dollar Store and went wild - for relatively little dinero, we lled a couple of shoe- boxes and had a great time doing it. They were practical items that we took for granted, yet meant so much for someone less fortunate. (By the way, if you know of someone with size 15 feet or can nd a boot box, which isn’t a stretch on the race track, some kid will think they hit the mother lode!).
If you don’t want to ll the shoebox but want to contribute, you can donate money to help pay for the shipping, usually $7 (Canadian) per box. Just go to the website and follow the instruc- tions, or if you’re anywhere near Woodbine, see me. I’ll take the boxes anytime, but we’ll of cially collect them at this year’s backstretch Christ- mas dinner at Woodbine, on Novem- ber 25. English philosopher Edmund Burke said, ‘The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.’ This year, let’s do something: let’s kick evil right in the teeth - ll a shoebox.
Ready for Halloween
Douglas LeBlanc, son of trainer John LeBlanc Jr. & Maggie, in
his Halloween costume, along with friends, Great Beauty and her Macho Uno colt.
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Specializing in horse racing trips abroad
George Wagner
Email: gwagner@ horseracingtripsworldwide.com
138 Mill Street Georgetown, ON L7G 2C1 Tel: 905 873-8100
Toll Free: 800 368-0872
www.horseracingtripsworldwide.com
NEWMARKET • LONGCHAMP • AINTREE CHELTENHAM • ASCOT • CURRAGH NAD AL SHEBA • ARLINGTON • EPSOM SARATOGA • SANDOWN • YORK
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HBPA Backstretch
Children’s Christmas Party
Santa is expected to make a visit with a sack full of presents for all the good boys & girls
Fort Erie: Suantudraday,y,NNoovveember 3205,20086
Crystal Ridge Community Center
99 Ridge Road, Ridgeway
12noon - 3pm
Tickets available at Fort Erie HBPA Office until F3rpidma,y,WNeodvneemsbdeary,1N1ovember 7
Woodbine: TMuoensdayy,,Noovveemmbberer2725, 2008
Woodbine Backstretch Kitchen 5pm - 8pm
Register at the Woodbine HBPA Backstretch office
To attend you
must have a
valid ORC license.
The parties are restricted to immediate family only.
Lone Endeavor with Daniel David aboard was the convincing winner of $25,000 The Game Cup at Fort Erie October 25, 2008.
before November 201
The Game NOVEMBER 2008.indd 10
10/28/08
12:59:22 AM The
pists like Bill Gates.
Last year, our Chapel Service
group undertook something a
little different: it was called Opera- tion Christmas Child, sponsored by
a ministry called Samaritan’s Purse (www.samaritanspurse.ca/occ/). The purpose is to take an ordinary shoe- box, which usually houses your tax receipts from the last 10 years, and ll it with gifts for a young boy or girl. The box is then collected and sent to a child in an underdeveloped country as a Christmas present. At this time last year, I challenged our Chapel group
to put together some shoeboxes. I was hoping for 2 - they responded with 6! In turn, they suggested this might be a good idea for the whole track, (Wood- bine), to undertake in 2008. Although this is intended primarily for the horse people of Woodbine and/or Fort Erie, this challenge goes out to anyone in the racing industry in Canada: put together a shoebox and send it out. Many times we can feel like we can’t make a difference in the world but this is one moment you can. I’ve viewed the DVDs that show the kids from Africa and around the world receiv- ing their gifts and it puts a lump in my throat. The things we view as trivial are life changing for a child who has
The Game Cup Winner
Lone Endeavor is owned by Jeffrey MacPherson and trained by Gordon Cowie
with Chaplain Shawn