Pletchers Honored with Marylou Whitney Award for Commitment to The Backstretch Community
New York Race Track Chaplaincy on Aug. 16. Photo courtesy of NYRA.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Todd Pletcher, along with his wife Tracy, received the Marylou Whitney Award from the New York Race Track Chaplaincy for their continuing devotion and support of the backstretch community, at the organization’s 16th annual fund-raising brunch at the Saratoga National Golf Club on Aug. 16.
Pletcher has won more than 5,500 and a record eight Eclipse Awards during his Hall of Fame training career.
The Pletchers were presented with a framed racing scene created by equine artist Tom Chapman from the New York Race Track Chaplaincy. In a surprise appearance, Todd Pletcher’s mentor, the 87-year-old Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, made the presentation.
The brunch attracted a record crowd of approximately 350 people. Trainer Jena Antonucci – the first woman to win a Triple Crown race – and Hall of Famers Javier Castellano, Angel Cordero Jr., Edgar Prado, and Johnny Velazquez were among those in attendance.
The New York Race Track Chaplaincy serves the New York backstretch and farming community with children’s enrichment, teen mentoring, women’s programming, social service, recreational, and educational programming as well as non-denominational religious services. Additional information about the New York Race Track Chaplaincy is available at rtcany.org.