After The Races Announces ASPCA Matching Donations For Organization To Secure A New Permanent Home
Updated: Jun 1
MAY 24TH, UPDATE:
With the help of SO many people, the full potential of the ASPCA grant has been officially matched!
Elkton, Maryland. (Friday, April 19, 2024)
On New Year's Eve, After the Races (ATR) received notice, the farm it has called home for seven years was being sold. After the Races quickly launched a capital campaign that raised over $300,000 in five weeks, but ultimately lost the bidding war for its current property. Starting Monday, April 22, 2024, The ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) is stepping in to match donations, dollar for dollar, up to $60,000.
There will be a period of 32 days where the ASPCA will match every dollar donated to After the Races up to $60,000. If fully matched, ATR's capital campaign fund will have nearly $500,000 set aside to purchase a new farm. Relationships with three banks have been established, so when the right property is found, and these funds are raised, ATR will be ready to make a serious offer, and move on to bigger and better things than our current property could provide.
“After the Races was first connected to the ASPCA Right Horse program in 2019, and it was clear very quickly that our goals, and principles aligned,” said Bonnie McRae, Founder and director of After the Races. “5 years of partnership shows this to still be the case and so when an unexpected and potential tragedy struck, it made sense to reach out to our partners at the ASPCA. We could not be more grateful that they stepped up to help us rehabilitate and rehome more horses."
“The ASPCA is thrilled to support After The Races' campaign to raise money for a new facility which will allow them to expand their work transforming the lives of at-risk horses,” said Christie Schulte Kappert, senior director of ASPCA Equine Welfare. “After The Races is a member of our ASPCA Right Horse program, a leader in increasing equine adoption, and a generous partner to other adoption organizations – sharing learnings, best practices, and expertise to advance the entire field. We hope this matching grant will encourage others in their community and all those who care about horses to step forward with their support and help them achieve this goal.”
Supporters of After the Races are encouraged to start making donations from April 22 to May 24, 2024, either by mailing checks or donating through the website which supports credit, debit, PayPal, and Venmo. More information about the capital campaign, as well as donation link, can be found here: aftertheraces.org/savethefarm
Supporters are also encouraged to subscribe to our newsletter for weekly updates on campaign progress.
WHAT HAPPENED?
On New Year's Eve, our landlord called to tell us he was selling the farm. The farm that ATR has called home for 7 years. The farm that he built for ATR.
ATR made three offers on the farm, but ultimately lost to a higher bidder.
Honestly, as much as we love it, it's not worth as much as it's going for, and for our mental health and for the preservation of our mission, we have to move on.
So the wider search began!
WHAT'S THE STATUS?
The ATR family RALLIED is what happened!
Y'all raised more than $300,000 in FIVE WEEKS!
People came out of the woodwork to make sure that ATR's mission continues.
New connections have been made, amazing events are in the works, and we are confident that the upcoming move will be the one that sees ATR finally able to GROW and really expand our mission, expand our rehabilitation facilities, create an educational program, and so much more!
While nothing is certain at this exact moment, we are actively looking at other properties and have a couple at the top of our list.
When the right property is ready, ATR needs to be ready! So the capital campaign continues!
HOW CAN I HELP?
Donate! This probably goes without saying, but seriously, donate! Whether you can do $5 or $50,000, it does ALL. ADD. UP.
After donating: share. BUT!
Posts that are shared without ANY comments are ignored. Period.
Share the post, but write a personal appeal to your audience when you do.
Tell people why this matters to you. Tell people why ATR's continued existence is critical for the racehorses in our region and beyond.
Tell people that without ATR, over a hundred racehorses a year will be left without a place to retire safely.
HOW DO I DONATE?
Directly on the website (supports credit, debit, PayPal, and Venmo!)
Mail checks to After the Races, 3168 Telegraph Rd, Elkton, MD 21921.
If you are mailing a check, let us know it's coming.
Include a note or write on the memo that it's for the capital campaign.
Donate stocks or securities! ATR is now set up to receive these donations!
Avoid paying capital gains AND get a tax write-off!
Work for a big company? See if they have a matching program for donations!
Own racehorses? Donate a percentage of winnings! This can be for a specific period of time, indefinitely, for a specific level of racing, you make the rules!
Own a store or restaurant? Donate a percentage of sales for a day - we'll even advertise for you and send people your way!
Donate property. Not super liquid right now, but have a car, trailer, etc you could part with? As long as it has a clean title we can accept those too!
We will sell the donated property and the money will go toward the capital campaign.
Be creative! If we haven't listed a way to donate that you come up with - just email us!
WITH A MOVE TO A NEW PROPERTY:
ATR will be able to expand, increasing our daily capacity from 20 up to 45.*
ATR's yearly capacity could grow from roughly 100 horses a year to as many as 150.*
ATR will create a larger, separate rehabilitation space where horses can recover from injuries in a quiet environment with more amenities.
An indoor riding area will be built so horses can be trained year-round, regardless of weather, to prepare them for a more successful adoption. Without an indoor, ATR loses approximately 3.5 months a year to weather!
ATR will finally be able to launch an internship program where students from all over the country can have a place to learn, get experience, and build their resumes.
A dream goal for ATR founder Bonnie McRae is to start a trauma recovery program where retiring racehorses play a crucial role in the teaching and healing process for veterans, first responders, as well as civilians with PTSD.
*Capacity is estimated. Current facility has 20 stalls. We hope to grow to as many as 45 (with 5 being for quarantine). Doubling our day to day capacity will not double our annual capacity exactly as we will be able to take on more rehabilitation cases, and those horses need more time than the average horse.
HOW DO WE KNOW ATR WILL BE SUCCESSFUL WITH A LARGER FACILITY?
ATR has a unique and effective business model that has served us well since 2011. Our budget is designed to run on a cost-per-horse basis. The budget remains relatively consistent whether we have 10 stalls or 50. We have seen this budget work as we've moved, expanding our capacity as we grew, from one larger rental to another.
The cost-per-horse budget accounts for the obvious costs (feed, bedding, hay), as well as the overhead or hidden costs (rent or mortgage, staffing, insurance, utilities, etc.).
This means that as soon as we're ready to build or fill more stalls, we will have the funding to hire any additional staff needed to step in to care for them. AND if we own our facility, our cost-per-stall (mortgage vs rent) should be much less than what we're paying as renters! Our plan is also to repay the mortgage early (we have a bank that offers no penalties for repaying the loan early!), which will lower our day to day costs even further. To fund our program, After the Races combines donations from our track partners or the race connections of our incoming racehorses, with adoption fees, grant writing, and fundraising events. In addition, this September, ATR will be hosting it's first ever gala. With the help of an experienced fundraiser, this is expected to be the biggest equine charity event on the East Coast in 2024! It is expected to bring in a net revenue of six figures. If the event is even half as successful as expected, it will become an annual event and add another great line to our annual operating revenue.
HAVE MORE QUESTIONS OR WANT TO BECOME AN ONGOING SPONSOR OF THE PROGRAM?
All you have to do is reach out. The direct line to our founder and director is her email: info@aftertheraces.org.
Voicemails related to the capital campaign may also be left at the following number: (717) 546-4637. Those voicemails will be seen immediately during business hours and returned and quickly as possible.
ABOUT AFTER THE RACES
After the Races is a 501c3, accredited rehabilitation and rehoming facility. Our mission is to rehabilitate and rehome retiring Thoroughbred racehorses into suitable, long-term homes while promoting the versatility and usefulness of the breed beyond racing. Since its inception in 2011, After the Races has served more than 900 retired racehorses, including broodmares, and hopes with a successful capital campaign, to be set up to help the next 900 horses and beyond.
Article By Bonnie McRae, Founder & Director of After The Races.
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