Show Your Support for the SHHA
Thursday, March 4th, 2021Home – Stop The Sweatheart Deal for Rivers Casino (stopthesweetheartdeal.org)
Please visit the site above and show your support of the SHHA’s pursuit of funding from Rivers Casino.
Saratoga Harness Horseperson's Association, Inc. |
Information and calendar for Saratoga Harness Racing |
Home – Stop The Sweatheart Deal for Rivers Casino (stopthesweetheartdeal.org)
Please visit the site above and show your support of the SHHA’s pursuit of funding from Rivers Casino.
There will be an article in the Times Union pertaining to obtaining supplemental purse payments from Rivers for CY2020 and beyond, including addressing the currently proposed item in the NYS Budget regarding these payments.
As previously stated in our February update, a letter was issued (by Joe Battaglia and Sarah) to the Governor’s Budget Office on February 7th detailing the importance of those payments to our business and requesting resolution of this issue. Joe testified on behalf of the SHHA at the Budget Hearing on February 23rd. This item is our highest priority at present.
Significant Items Currently Being Worked:
General Items:
Racing Schedule for 2021:
If you have any questions for the Board, please do not hesitate to contact one of the twelve (12) current Board members or the Horsemen’s Representative. We would like to work together with you to support you in any way we reasonably can. Should you desire to bring an item to the attention of the Board at its next meeting, please contact our Administrative Assistant Karen Kamal (cell = 518-775-0975) at least five (5) days prior to the scheduled meeting. She will provide you with a time slot near the beginning of the meeting to present your item. If you have material you would like the Board to review, please also provide that information to Karen so she can provide it to the Board members in advance of the meeting. Thank you, in advance, for your support!
Our next meeting is currently scheduled for Friday, March 19th at 12:30 in the Recreation Room adjacent to the Track Kitchen.
The SHHA Board of Directors
Gaming Commission staff will be in the office to process Racing License renewals on the following dates from 9AM until 2PM:
Tuesday, February 23
Thursday, February 25
Friday, February 26
Anyone needing to renew their license should call 518-581-5885 to make a same-day appointment (They are not taking appointments in advance).
Due to the storm, Tuesday, Feb 16th qualifiers are rescheduled to Thursday Feb 18th at 10AM.
The next scheduled qualifiers is Tuesday, Feb 23rd at noon.
Once racing resumes, qualifiers are scheduled for Tuesdays at 4:30PM
SCH has put together a handbook and along with the SHHA’S approval we now have a final copy. A hard copy of The Horseperson’s Handbook will be distributed starting Friday 2/12/2021 at the Stable gate until all Horsepersons on our Backstretch has received a copy. Please be sure to obtain a handbook. Any questions feel free to stop by my office, I will be happy to answer any questions.
Charles Astarita Administrative Security Manager
Saratoga Casino Hotel
342 Jefferson Street, PO Box 356
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
(518) 584-2110 Ext. 5650
The Board of Directors meeting for Thursday February 18th at 12:30pm, has been rescheduled to Friday February 19th at 12:30pm. If a member wishes to bring an item to the attention of the Board at this meeting, please contact our Administrative Assistant Karen Kamal (cell = 518-775-0975) at least five (5) days prior to the scheduled meeting. There is one time slot available for this meeting. She will provide you with a time slot near the beginning of the meeting to present your item. If you have material you would like the Board to review, please provide that information to Karen no later than noon on Monday February 15th, so she can provide the material to the Board members in advance of the meeting.
Longtime horseman Norm Dessureault of Pompano Beach, Fla. passed away on Thursday (Jan. 28) at the age of 72.
He competed at tracks across North America during his career, including Saratoga. Norm won 1,838 races as a driver while training the winners of nearly 600 races. He was training a small stable in Florida at the time of his passing.
There are still some trainers with Stall Applications due. Please submit your application ASAP to the Stable gate.
Dr. Richard Arthur (Doc) Frank, D.V.M., 81, died peacefully on January 24, 2021 at the Home of the Good Shepherd at Highpointe in Malta, after a short illness. Born in Middletown, NY on June 27, 1939, son of the late Joseph A. Frank and Helen Fitzgerald Baummer, he was raised in Goshen, NY and graduated high school from Goshen Central High School.
He attended Paul Smith’s College and received his bachelor’s at Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. He went on to become a Doctor of Veterinary Science after graduating in 1964 from Cornell University in Ithaca, NY.
An equine veterinarian most of his career, he was dedicated to serving the needs of the horse owners and trainers at the Saratoga Harness Track and surrounding area for more than 50 years. He was inducted into The Saratoga Harness Racing Hall of Fame & Museum in 2015. He was a life-time member of many professional organizations and was always reading and attending conferences to stay up to date in his profession.
Affectionately known as “Doc Frank”, he had a warm, caring, and generous heart and was well loved by many.
He loved the outdoors and when not working, loved to fly his Cessna, hunt, photograph wildlife, work on his elaborate model train sets, and spend quality time with his family on the farm.
A loving and devoted husband and father, he is survived by his wife of 56 years, Beverly Stevens Frank, whom he married November 21, 1964, daughters Kathleen (Alexander) Gonzalez of Stillwater and Cheryl (Benjamin) Sullivan of Underhill, VT, son Gregory Arthur Frank of Stillwater, and grandchildren Sean and Chloe Gonzalez, Kyley Sullivan, and Kyleigh and Sydney Frank.
Keep the Heavens laughing, Doc!
The family want to thank The Home of the Good Shepherd at Highpointe in Malta and The Community Hospice of Saratoga County for the love and care given to him while a resident and also all the friends who have walked this journey with us.
Due to COVID 19 concerns, a Celebration of Life will be held at a later time when it is safe to do so. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to either the Lewy Body Dementia Association, www.lbda.org/donate/ or 912 Killian Hill Road S.W., Lilburn, GA 30047, the Saratoga Harness Horseperson’s Association, PO Box 171, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866, or The Community Hospice of Saratoga County, 179 Lawrence Street, NY 12866, in memory of Richard “Doc” Frank.