Hundreds of friends and family packed the National Museum of Racing’s event
By Teresa Genaro
If you didn’t know better, you’d have thought that the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was throwing a huge party, and that’s exactly how John Hendrickson would have wanted it.
Hendrickson died unexpectedly in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Aug. 19 after suffering cardiac arrest. He was 59 years old, and the news of his death rocked the upstate town, where Hendrickson had deep roots, especially in the racing community. On Friday, Aug. 30, the Museum, the board of which Hendrickson was chairman, held a celebration of life.
The event was open to the public, and the public turned out in force. Backstretch workers, prominent and affluent Thoroughbred owners and breeders, community members, and Hendrickson’s family mingled, sipped drinks, and enjoyed hors-d’oeuvres. People traveled from as far as California specifically to honor Hendrickson.
Hendrickson’s involvement in racing began when he married Marylou Whitney in 1997, and his influence was felt nowhere as strongly as on the backstretch, where he and Whitney established a program of dinners, movies, and other entertainment for grooms, hotwalkers, and other employees. Trainer Nick Zito, who trained Whitney’s homebred Birdstone to wins in the 2004 Belmont (G1) and Travers Stakes (G1), said that they got the idea of enriching the lives of barn workers after visiting the backstretch late one night. Hendrickson was also instrumental in funding a free clinic on the backstretch. That clinic opened last summer.
“I saw him the day before he died,” said Enzo Martinez, who works for trainer Jim Ryerson. “He passed away on my birthday, and then two days later at the backstretch bingo game, I won a couple of prizes. I felt like it was him giving them to me.”
He pointed at the sky, his eyes moist.
“I appreciate everything that Marylou and John did for us.”
“John always took care of everyone on the backstretch,” echoed Octavio Vazquez, one of trainer Eddie Barker’s employees. “I loved him, and I’m going to miss him.”
Soloist Elizabeth Pitcairn, the president and artistic director of the prestigious Luzerne Music Center in nearby Lake Luzerne, performed “Meditation from Thaïs,” composed by Jules Massenet in 1893, its quiet power stilling the room. Hendrickson’s brother Ed made brief remarks.
“He had the heart the size of a lion,” he said of his brother in the evening’s only remarks. “He was so full of love and compassion to make a difference in the lives of others, and I hope that you see that everyday.”
He added that his brother regularly texted his friends to check on them.
“Some of those texts were pretty inappropriate,” he said, smiling. “There were a bunch of them that I had to delete.”
Among those in attendance was New York State Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner, whose district includes Saratoga Springs.
“He had an impish sense of humor,” she said, sharing an anecdote that was strictly off the record. “He added an extra sparkle to the life of everyone he knew. I wanted to be here tonight because I’m going to miss him, and I wanted to be with everyone else who’s going to miss him, and to honor and recognize what a kind human being he was.”
“He was a constant presence at our events,” said Nancy Underwood. “He knew the workers and their families, and he was just as passionate as Marylou was. It doesn’t seem real that he’s not here anymore.”
Brien Bouyea is the Museum’s communications director, and he had spoken with Hendrickson the morning that he died.
“John was all about this community: Saratoga Springs, the Museum, racing,” said Bouyea. “He had a lot of stature in so many realms, but within a minute of meeting him, you felt like you knew him forever. He wouldn’t have wanted people feeling morose, so we wanted something that everyone could come to and feel comfortable. We miss him and his legacy is incredible.”
“He had a very big heart, he was a wonderful person, and we really appreciate him,” said River Gatón of Tom Morley’s barn. “The times that I was able to spend time with him, I knew that it was real, that it was legit that he really did care about us.”
Hendrickson’s funeral will be private, and his family has requested that in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Backstretch Employees Service Team in Saratoga Springs; the Fix-A-Bull program at Peggy Adams Rescue League in Palm Beach, Fla., the New York Race Track Chaplaincy, the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, or “an organization that means something to you.”
