Racetrack chaplain ministers to a “lost city”
TORONTO, ON—Chaplain Shawn Kennedy describes Woodbine, located in northwest Toronto, as a "lost city." The country's premier racetrack employees 1,800 people and stables 2,500 horses—many treated better than the human employees.
"This industry is geared to the horse," says Kennedy. "The horse comes first. The horse always has the right of way.
"After looking after an expensive horse, you don't feel like much after a while."
As a former trainer and amateur jockey who grew up in the horseracing industry—his father was a "gentleman horseman"—Kennedy understands the tier system that leads to the track's biggest problem: loneliness.
"It isn't a glamorous environment. Walking through the barns there's the sweet smell of success, but it ain't what you'd expect," says Kennedy, who describes his spiritual journey as more of a "time warp."
"I was driving one day and I had this, for lack of a better term, vision of myself as a little dot in a dark universe. It really had a huge impact on me. I started reading more about the Scripture and made a conscious decision to believe in God and accept Christ as my Saviour."
Within a year Kennedy was a full-time youth pastor and volunteer chaplain at Winnipeg's Assiniboia Downs. Hired as a youth pastor in Kansas in 2000, four years later he heard the call of the racetrack again. The Racetrack Chaplaincy of Canada was looking for a chaplain at Woodbine to complement the one at Mohawk so both of Ontario's key thoroughbred and harness tracks would be covered.
From his office in a converted garage affectionately called "The Jake" (the Jake Howard Centre name after a former Woodbine board chair), Kennedy oversees the ministry's chapel and counselling services, computer and language courses, resource library and clothing depot.
"A big part of this ministry is just trying to do normal human things for people," he says. Similar to a hospital or prison chaplain, Kennedy spends most of his time building relationships.
"I walk the barn area just to bump into people and see how they're doing. Some people I need to check up on to see if they're still there and relatively sober." With the loneliness often comes drug and alcohol abuse. Kennedy work includes help those who want to get back to work at the track.
Other key ministries are hospital work, palliative care and funerals.
"We had two people pass away [recently]—one who was in palliative care for quite a while. I had the chance to minister to him on his deathbed.
"Before there was a chaplain it was basically rent-a-pastor," says Kennedy. Now he's able to give God a human face by saying, 'I know this person, I've talked [and] walked with this person.'"
Kennedy also finds himself in ER trauma rooms where he's asked to pray for injured jockeys.
"Hospitals are grateful for that kind of presence—especially with the bad ones—realizing they need all the help they can get."
Kennedy quotes Ron Foxcroft, former basketball referee and the inventor of the Fox 40 whistle, who said the role of the referee amongst the chaos of injured players, screaming fans and yelling coaches is to be the one person in control.
"I think as a chaplain, I've got to bring that same thing in these situations—especially in the hospital where there isn't an answer, where there's anxiety, where there's fear," says Kennedy.
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