About

Our
Mission

The Standardbred Transition Alliance (STA) is a non-profit organization with federal 501(c)(3) status whose mission is to accredit, inspect and award grants to approved organizations that acquire, rehabilitate, train and re-home Standardbreds.

Funding is generated across the spectrum of the Standardbred industry, including regulatory agencies, horsemen’s groups, tracks, sales companies, farms, and individuals who participate as trainers, drivers, owners, and breeders.

The STA provides partial funding to groups serving Standardbreds, ensuring donor confidence by examining the equine care and business practices of groups applying for accreditation.

It is expected that the accreditation process will also assist groups in developing sustainable policies and programs.

Our
Board

Don Marean

Marean is the ex officio director representing the United States Trotting Association (USTA). He is chairman of USTA District 9. Marean is a past member of the Maine House of Representatives, and a current commissioner of the Maine State Harness Racing Commission.

Marean is a director of the Maine Farm Bureau Horse Council and currently is vice chair of the University of Maine (Orono) Board of Agriculture. He and wife Linda ran Lindon Farm, where they bred Standardbreds; they continue to live on the farm and care for their retired horses.

Moira Fanning, Renee Mancino & David Reid

Moira Fanning

Fanning is chief operating officer of the Hambletonian Society, which owns and services the sport’s most prestigious race, the Hambletonian, as well as 137 other stakes races.

She is a past president of the United States Harness Writers Association, a Standardbred owner and former caretaker.

Renee Mancino

Mancino is Executive Director of the Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association, tasked with managing the business of racing in Ohio and representing the collective horsemen with Ohio’s Racing Commission, Legislature, and Executive Branch. She oversees the administration of self-funded health and retirement benefits, as well as fire, mortality, sulky, and liability insurance. Her specialty preference is Gaming Law, including Equine Law, Indian Gaming Law, Racing and Wagering Law. In addition to her legal background, she worked as Operations Manager and Attorney for a race and sports book servicing business, providing leadership, oversight, legal, and compliance responsibility for the multi-faceted gaming business.

David Reid

Reid is president of Preferred Equine Marketing Inc, which conducts multiple sales of yearlings, bloodstock and horses of racing age each year, including private transactions.

He is a graduate of the State University of New York at Morrisville’s equine science program. Reid was a partner on the international trotting star, Moni Maker, and he continues as an owner of both Standardbreds and Thoroughbreds.

Renee Mancino

Elizabeth Caldwell

Caldwell is the third generation of her family to breed and race Standardbreds; she manages Cane Run Farm, owned by her mother, Rikki Caldwell, in Georgetown, Kentucky with her brother, Danny. Cane Run is the breeder, with Bluestone Farm, of the high profile international trotter, Propulsion. Cane Run bred his dam Danae, Moni Maker, Nan’s Catch and Magician.

Caldwell is an accomplished saddle seat rider and roadster competitor and is also on the board of the Kentucky Horse Park Foundation, the Stable of Memories, and the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame.

Chris Antonacci

Antonacci is an attorney actively involved in the management of his family’s Lindy Farms and other businesses as in house counsel. He’s a director of the U.S. Trotting Association and has been licensed as a groom, driver, trainer and owner across many racing jurisdictions.

Dr. Donna Franchetti

Dr. Franchetti is a sport horse veterinarian and Standardbred owner, concentrating on trotters. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School and competes in Western disciplines with her Standardbreds.

Kevin Greenfield

Greenfield is an attorney and past president of the Ohio Harness Horseman’s Association. He is president of Hickory Lane Horse Farm in Ohio and syndicate manager for stallions Tactical Landing, What The Hill, Uncle Peter and McArdle.

Dr. Alison Moore

Dr. Moore is an equine internist and sports medicine specialist who has been involved in the Ontario Standardbred industry over the years as a veterinarian, owner, breeder and groom. She is presently a member of the Ontario Association of Equine Practitioners executive and racing committees, the American Association of Equine Practitioners racing committee and the North American Association of Racetrack Veterinarians.

Rick Moore

Moore is vice president and general manager for racing at Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing & Casino. He has worked in leadership positions in Standardbred, Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing.

He is active in the community through Rotary, United Way, Chamber of Commerce and is a board member of the Animal Protection League.

Dr. Andy Roberts

Dr. Roberts is a racetrack veterinarian based in the Midwest. He’s worked for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission at Keeneland, Churchill, Turfway and Ellis Park racetracks. A member and past president of the KY Association of Equine Practitioners and a board member of the North American Association of Racetrack Veterinarians, Dr. Roberts is currently a director of the U.S. Trotting Association. He’s been licensed as a trainer and driver for over 30 years.

Russell Williams

Russell Williams is president of the USTA, president/CEO of Hanover Shoe Farms, and chairman of the board of Standardbred Horse Sales Co. Williams has spent his entire life in the sport. Earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Virginia and a law degree from the University of Richmond. Serves as a trustee of the Harness Racing Museum and the Hanover Foundation for Excellence in Education. President of the Hanover Shoe Farms Foundation.

M. Kelly Young

Young is a past executive director of the Agriculture and New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund, which sponsors the New York Sire Stakes.

She formerly served as deputy director of public policy at the New York Farm Bureau, advocating on legislative and regulatory matters affecting farmers. She is the fifth generation of her family to work in harness racing.

Our

Partners

United Horse Council

Supporting Member

www.unitedhorsecoalition.org

The Right Horse Initiative

Industry Partner

www.therighthorse.org

Equine Welfare Data Collective

EWDC Ambassador

www.unitedhorsecoalition.org/ewdc

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Standardbred Transition Alliance?

The mission of the Standardbred Transition Alliance (STA) is to inspect, accredit and award grants to approved organizations that acquire, rehabilitate, train and re-home Standardbred horses, using industry-wide funding. The STA is approved as a 501(c)(3) Internal Revenue approved charity and is also registered with the Ohio Secretary of State and Attorney General. IRS application for 501(c)(3) designation was filed in October of 2018 and approved in April of 2019.
Why do we need the STA? Can’t we just support existing adoption groups?

The existing groups are at or beyond capacity. There is a wide disparity in numbers of horses served, services provided, staffing, budgets and other resources. Horse adoption programs generally operate with no oversight and no way for donors to ensure their money is being used wisely. We need additional groups to help Standardbreds across the country.
It is expected that the accreditation process will elevate the level of both business and equine care practices and identify groups whose work is sustainable and exemplary. It is expected in the future that groups that now take no or minimal numbers of Standardbreds will seek them out because of the available grant funding. Donors and grantors will be assured their donations are used responsibly when they give to accredited groups.
What is the benefit to adoption groups?

It is expected that accredited groups will gain elevated status in the eyes of granting sources outside the industry. Additionally, the accreditation process is intended to be an instructional one, identifying areas for improvement within programs’ equine care and business practices. The STA will work with groups to develop and strengthen those areas and make them more sustainable for the future in addition to providing partial operating funds through grants.
Won’t the STA just compete with existing Standardbred adoption groups?

Nothing the STA will do replicates the work of the existing groups and accreditation is a voluntary process. The STA will not care for horses, rehabilitate, train, or find them homes. The STA will not replicate existing fundraising mechanisms used by such groups, such as stallion season auctions.
Ultimately, it is expected that expansion of the numbers of accredited programs that accept Standardbreds will lighten the burden on existing groups and give them referral outlets.
Where did this concept come from?

The STA is modeled on the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA), which last year accredited 73 groups and distributed $3 million in grants to partially fund those groups. Their model, which relies on 19 different sources of funding across a broad spectrum of the industry, has been replicated in Japan and France. The TAA has been very generous in sharing operations policies and procedures and we have the benefit of their experience in forming the STA.
Where will the money come from?

The STA seeks a broad based funding platform, one that is prevalent, proportional and permanent. For the long term, we seek a uniform system of donations, tied to transactions generated every day. The pool of money available is not unlimited, which makes it even more important to ensure that every dollar generated for transition care is spent wisely – on carefully scrutinized groups, to ensure responsible financial and horse care practices.