Wednesday, April 01, 2020	Contact: Shannon Kelly (212) 521-5327
The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation Donates Face Shields to NYRA
The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation donated 1,000 Kroop’s Brands face shields to the New York Racing Association (NYRA) racetrack community as it deals with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. NYRA’s Aqueduct Racetrack is the location for a temporary medical facility being constructed to help during the pandemic. “The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation is committed to helping Thoroughbred racing industry personnel, and providing face shields to NYRA during this difficult time is another way that we are able to help,” said Shannon Kelly, executive director, The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation. “Donations to the foundation are earmarked for backstretch workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the current priority is stocking food pantries at racetracks around the country.” To contribute to the foundation, please visit tjcfoundation.org/donate.  Kroop’s makes goggles for sports such as horse racing and skydiving. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company began creating a face shield to help protect medical personnel and others from the coronavirus. “We started seeing a lot of a particular goggle moving on our website and Amazon — this was four to six weeks ago — and we assumed it was in response to the virus. We started noticing where they were going, medical supply companies and doctors, and we realized that they need goggles and can’t get them,” said Andrew Trembley, president of Kroop’s. “We're using components and equipment used to make the jockey goggles to make the shields.” For more information about Kroop’s, visit kroops.com. Other companies involved with Thoroughbred racing are also finding creative ways to help during the pandemic. You can read more about them at americasbestracing.net. The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation is a charitable trust that provides, on a confidential basis, financial relief to needy members of the Thoroughbred industry and their families. Recipients of the Safety Net Foundation’s support represent virtually every facet of the Thoroughbred industry, from jockeys, trainers, exercise riders, and grooms to office personnel and other employees of racetracks, racing organizations, and breeding farms. Assistance can come in any number of forms, including financial aid, medication, surgical and hospital costs, therapeutic equipment, voice-recognition computers for quadriplegics, and wheelchair-accessible vans. Since 1985, The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation has provided more than $16 million in assistance.

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