Jockey colonies across the country, in conjunction with racetracks, are planning visits to their local children's hospital during September which is designated as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, the Jockeys Guild announced Wednesday. A number of tracks including Indiana Grand, and Prairie Meadows have scheduled visits while other tracks including Churchill Downs, Remington Park, Retama, Lone Star Park, Laurel Park, Los Alamitos and Zia Park are in the process of securing a date. The jockeys at Emerald Downs, Delaware Park and Belterra Park recently made a visit to their local hospital. The jockeys bring a variety of gifts for the children including autographed goggles, provided in conjunction with Perfect Trip, as well as items donated by each track.
“Jockeys always enjoy taking the time to visit children who suffer from this terrible disease or other conditions which force them to be hospitalized for sometimes long periods of time,” chairman John Velazquez said. “We hope we make the day a little brighter for them as well as for their families. It also gives the jockeys a different perspective.”
The Jockeys' Guild is also supplying the jockeys at all the tracks with a live meet during September, with patches that have the official Childhood Cancer Awareness gold insignia to wear on their pants or boots during the month.
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