April 10, 2023
By Bill Galvin Racing Alliance
DURHAM, April 10, 2023 - A group of Ontario harness racing enthusiasts who were friends and associates of the late Bill Galvin, have formed a Not-For-Profit organization to promote Ontario harness racing in the Hall of Famer’s honour.
The
Bill Galvin Racing Alliance (BGRA) includes founder and director Karen Hauver, along with four other volunteer directors, Brenda Lothmann, Jane Belore, Ken Middleton and Kathy Wade Vlaar.
The mission of the BGRA is to work together to create and encourage partnerships and programs that will promote and grow harness racing by engaging the general public with the racing community.
“To achieve this, we hope to introduce both youth and adults to the numerous opportunities and career options offered throughout the industry,” said director Jane Belore.
Each member of the group had a relationship with Galvin, who made a tremendous impact on horse racing in the country. The native of Arnprior, Ont., was part of just the second class to be inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame’s Communicator category.
For 2023, the BGRA is coordinating four creative horse-themed contests for youth – a Literary Derby, Art Derby, Photography Derby and Video Derby. Details of the contests, an expansion of the 2018 Youth Literary Derby, coordinated by Galvin,
are available on the website.
The initial Youth Literary Derby was designed to encourage writing and literacy skills and to reach out to horse loving kids in Ontario elementary schools.
In keeping with Galvin’s vision, the four contests will challenge the educational system to draw the attention of today’s youth to learn about and interact with horses, which are considered nature in one of its finest forms.
The organization will create opportunities to connect young people to the equine world by showcasing these athletes.
“I had the pleasure of working alongside Bill on the 2018 Youth Literary Derby and I can’t begin to describe how passionate he was about promoting harness racing and connecting people with horses,” said Karen Hauver.
Hauver's late sister Barb Lennox had the idea to form the group.
"(Barb) suggested that we create a group in Bill’s honour that could continue his legacy of making a difference in the industry," said Hauver. "We then called upon some other harness racing enthusiasts that have varying skill sets and areas of expertise and also had a connection to Bill. And, fortunately for us, they were more than happy to volunteer their time.”
For more information on the BGRA, click
here
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