The inaugural New York Thoroughbred Aftercare Day will be held July 21 at Saratoga Race Course, the New York Racing Association (NYRA), New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (NYTHA), and New York Thoroughbred Breeders (NYTB) jointly announced Wednesday. The featured race on the program will be the Rick Violette Stakes, named for the late NYTHA president and trainer. Violette, who died in 2018, spearheaded the creation of the TAKE2 program, which sponsors prize money and special awards in Thoroughbred hunter and jumper classes to create demand for offtrack Thoroughbreds; and Take The Lead, which works with owners and trainers to find placements for horses retiring from NYRA tracks. Violette also was a founding member of the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA). “We’re proud to carry on Rick Violette’s work in promoting and protecting our equine athletes,” trainer Rick Schosberg, who succeeded Violette as president of TAKE2 and Take The Lead, said in a joint press release. “The horses give us so much – the excitement of the race, the pleasure of their company, our appreciation of their power and beauty. We owe our very livelihoods to them. It is our duty to make sure they have safe haven when their racing careers are over.” New York Thoroughbred Aftercare Day will begin with former racehorses in a demonstration of the skills they have learned for their second careers, through training at New Vocations, which has a facility in Gansevoort, N.Y., and ReRun, based just outside of Albany in East Greenbush. ReRun will be represented by a pair of New York-breds retired through Take The Lead in 2020 – graded stakes-placed Uncle Sigh, who ran in the 2014 Kentucky Derby, and former claimer Golden Giant. New Vocations will be represented by a trio of horses working in different disciplines – Inventor’s Gate in ranch riding, Remembering Bobbie in dressage, and Soaring Star in show jumping. Following that demonstration, fans will have the opportunity to learn about and contribute to Thoroughbred aftercare throughout the day. The community booth behind the jockeys' quarters will offer information on New Vocations, ReRun, TAKE2, and Take The Lead, along with six additional TAA-accredited organizations – ACTT Naturally, Akindale Thoroughbred Rescue, Lucky Orphans, Old Friends at Cabin Creek, Second Chance Thoroughbreds, and the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation. Fans will have the opportunity to learn more about the state's initiatives with video presentations on NYRA's in-house broadcast and “Saratoga Live” discussing the process of retiring a horse from the track to finding the perfect adopter to the many second careers that are suitable for Thoroughbreds. In addition to contributions made by NYRA, NYTHA, NYTB, the NYRA jockey colony, and individual owners and trainers to aftercare, there have been two groundbreaking programs implemented at NYRA tracks. Owners pay a per-start fee for every horse that races, and they pay a surcharge on every horse claimed out of a NYRA race. Those two programs alone raise about $500,000 every year. Racing fans can support programs on Aftercare Day by texting AFTERCARE2021 to 44321 and donating to Take The Lead, or by opting to make a donation to the TAA when cashing a winning ticket on an AmTote International self-service betting terminal. “New York State is the national leader when it comes to responsibly protecting our retired racehorses,” NYRA president and CEO Dave O’Rourke said. "NYRA is pleased to partner with NYTHA and the NYTB to create a day at Saratoga to honor the hard work of so many involved in Thoroughbred aftercare. We look forward to cementing this day as a Saratoga tradition for many years to come.” The culmination of the day's activities will be the post parade for the Rick Violette Stakes, which will be led by New York-bred millionaire Zivo. The winner of the 2014 Suburban Handicap, Zivo is now retired and enjoying life as the stable pony for trainer Cherie DeVaux.