The Oak Tree Racing Association presented a check for $25,000 to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina to the Arcadia chapter of the American Red Cross Saturday at Santa Anita.
The check represented public donations as well as a separate contribution from Oak Tree for artwork created by equine artist Fred Stone. Some of the art was signed by Mr. Stone and several active and retired jockeys, including Eddie Delahoussaye, Chris McCarron, Laffit Pincay Jr., Kent Desormeaux, Patrick Valenzuela, David Flores, Garrett Gomez, Corey Nakatani, and Victor Espinoza.
"The generosity of the patrons at Santa Anita Park, the jockeys, and Fred Stone is overwhelming," said Terry Bankston, a Red Cross volunteer since 2001.
"We want to sincerely thank the public for their generosity, and we would like to acknowledge Fred Stone, who put a tremendous amount of work into this project," said Sherwood Chillingworth, Oak Tree director and executive vice president. "Additionally, we'd like to thank all the jockeys who were so generous with their time and effort."
To date, the Arcadia chapter of the American Red Cross has raised $1.3 million for Hurricane Katrina victims, according to Pete Siberell, Santa Anita director of community events.