By Jessica Able, Record Staff Writer
Attention on Churchill Downs this week will be focused on the twin spires, Millionaire’s Row, mint juleps and all the pageantry surrounding “the greatest two minutes in sports.”
But beyond the turf and the winner’s circle, hundreds of people live and work with the horses on the racetrack’s backside.
About 1,000 workers labor at the backside each day and about 600 of them actually call it home, said the Rev. Ken Boehm, senior chaplain at Churchill Downs’ Christ Chapel.
Outside the chapel, the backside buzzed with activity last week. As Kentucky Derby contenders arrived, workers were engrossed in preparing barns, transporting hay and grooming horses.
As Rev. Boehm’s cell phone rang, his ringtone played the call to the post. He is warm, affectionate and greets strangers with hugs.
Rev. Boehm, along with associate chaplain Chris Wong and a host of volunteers — including parishioners of Archdiocese of Louisville churches — provides spiritual care for the workers.
“For many, they travel from racetrack to racetrack. What is that one constant? The chaplaincy program at the racetracks,” Rev. Boehm said in an
interview at the chapel last week.
Christ Chapel is part of the Kentucky Race Track Chaplaincy (KRTC). It offers ecumenical worship services in English and Spanish each Monday. A separate service for children is held simultaneously. Following the service, worshippers are invited to stay for a meal provided by a network of about 40 local churches, including the Church of the Epiphany, Our Lady of Lourdes Church, St. Edward Church and St. Gregory Church in Samuels, Ky.
The ministry
Epiphany parishioners Muffy Sinclair and Brayton Bowen are both longtime volunteers at Christ Chapel. Sinclair directs the children’s program. Bowen helps connect workers to community resources.
They see their work as a way to live their faith, especially Pope Francis’ call to mercy.
As director of the children’s program, Sinclair coordinates children’s ministry for two age groups: 3-7 years and 8-12 years. Aside from lesson plans, Sinclair said she sees her role and the role of volunteers as “being constant” in the lives of the track’s children.
“This is a very safe and loving space here for them. There is a consistency, which is one reason I’m here a lot. Now, I’m a familiar face,” said Sinclair, who is also a member of the KRTC board of directors. Attendance at the children’s liturgy varies from 15 to 40 kids each.
Sinclair said she believes the backside ministry is more important than ever, given the climate of politics in the U.S.
“Now with the political rancor going on and the concern over immigration. It’s so important that what we do here is to continue to help learn about each other,” she said. “We are learning about another culture and they are learning about us. The best way to live in peace and love is to keep doing things together.”
Rev. Boehm estimated that 75 percent of the grooms and hot walkers are Spanish-speakers, many from Guatemala and Mexico. He said what Sinclair has done for the families at the chapel is “invaluable.”
“For these kids who have so much changing around them, to know when they come to the chapel on Mondays, Muffy will be there, welcoming them and asking about their week is incredible. She shows the love of Christ in what she’s doing,” he said.
Bowen, who is also a member of the KRTC’s board of directors, became involved with Christ Chapel about a dozen years ago. Since that time, he has spearheaded the Epiphany Backside Ministry program. The group has about 40 active members and meets monthly to plan outreach efforts.
Bowen said the backside ministry is a way to practice Catholic social teaching.
“It fits in directly with what our pope is talking about in terms of mercy,” Bowen said. “Compassion is not about charity. It’s about mercy. In the case of the backside, it’s about solidarity.”
Faith-filled workers
Rev. Boehm said individuals who work on the backsides of racetracks are among the hardest working and most faith-filled people he knows.
Despite his admiration and affection for the backside workers, Rev. Boehm said he’s disheartened by those in the community who have a negative opinion of the backside and its workers.
“A lot of people think of the backside in a negative light because it’s the gambling industry. There are some who see someone who speaks Spanish and immediately assume they are undocumented workers,” he said.
Far more often than not, he said, that assumption is wrong.
“The people here are working hard, doing a job many others don’t want. They get up before the crack of dawn and continue working until the work is done. And, they are getting up to do it all again the next day,” he said.
Life on the backside
Rev. Boehm describes the backside as equal parts competitive and supportive.
“Life on the backside is challenging. Racing is very competitive and that gets in your blood. There is a spirit of competition back here,” he said, adding, “It’s more than work, it’s a family.”
Rev. Boehm noted that most backside workers are far from home, and their co-workers become a second family. Though they hail from different cultures, the one thing that unites them is God, he said.
“Our love for God, his love for us — as different as we are, we are all children of God,” he said.
Rev. Boehm said he has an advantage that most pastors lack. He gets to see his congregation day in and day out, working six days a week at the track. Sunday is his day off, due to the racing schedule.
Thirty minutes before the first post each day of live racing, Rev. Boehm offers a prayer with the jockeys in the jockey room, including Oaks and Derby days. He offers similar prayers for safety with the pony crews and gate crews.
“I’m always praying for safety,” he said.
Christ Chapel offerings
During the live race meets, Christ Chapel is available for a Catholic Mass on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. In addition to the weekly worship service, the chapel hosts a Bible study on Wednesdays. A clothing closet, filled with gently-used items donated by churches, is available to individuals twice a week. And, a food pantry provides emergency food supplies.
Volunteers host a Christmas party, Easter egg hunt, monthly family movie nights, Vacation Bible School and summer Bible camps for children.
The chaplaincy’s largest fundraiser — which was held May 2 — is the Race for Grace benefit dinner. Early estimates indicated the event netted $150,000 for the chaplaincy program, Sinclair said.
To learn more about Christ Chapel and the Kentucky Race Track Chaplaincy, visit kychaplaincy.com or like the group’s Facebook page: Kentucky Race Track Chaplaincy.
