Greetings. It was great seeing many of you last week at the Breeders’ Cup and for our two primary events – the 63rd annual NTWAB Awards Dinner and the membership meeting.
 

The Awards Dinner was blessed with more than 120 attendees, including a 100 percent attendance rate for our winners (something we were unlucky about the last two years). The venue – secured almost at the 11th hour by our event-planning team led by Loren Hebel-Osborne – at the Altadena Town & Country Club seemed well received. Take a moment to check out the photos from the event here, courtesy of Mary Eddy from NYRA (and former member of our team at The Saratoga Special). 

The event obviously took on greater significance in the aftermath of the Breeders’ Cup with the passing of Cody Dorman, who came with his parents as part of “Team Cody’s Wish.” And the trend of good karma for horsemen who show up at the event also continued as Bill Mott, who was on hand with “Team Cody’s Wish,” won three races over the weekend.

Thirty-six members – 17 in person and 19 via Zoom – attended the membership meeting, where we discussed protocols, issues, complaints and other topics with representatives from HISA and HIWU. We also received a report from the Membership Review Committee, the Scholarship/Internship committee, discussed Media Eclipse Awards (the deadline is 8 p.m. ET Friday, Nov. 17) and some changes in the rules for 2023 and approved applications for 10 new members.

Welcome to Regular Writer members Karen Johnson, Jim Mulvihill, Ken Snyder and Remi Bellocq; Regular Broadcaster members Todd Schrupp, Matt Bernier and Mike Joyce; and Associate members Dubbs Anderson, Carlos Morales and Anthony Mormino.

Attached are Minutes from the meeting from Jennifer Kelly, along with the Treasurer's Report from Dick Downey.

Please let me know of any issues you encountered at the Breeders’ Cup. I typically have a follow-up meeting with Jim Gluckson to discuss any issues related to access, credentialing, etc., in the immediate weeks after the event.

Eclipse Award voting will begin soon; so please be sure to have dues paid up and let Jennifer Kelly know of any address changes for the printed voting packet as soon as possible.

Finally, I wish you all a safe and happy Thanksgiving.

Tom Law
NTWAB President
November 10, 2023