Nancy Kelly, longtime friend of racing charities, dies at 71

Nancy Kelly, who helped raise millions of dollars for equine research and for individuals in need throughout the Thoroughbred industry over the course of a 32-year career at The Jockey Club, died Friday in Garden City Park, N.Y.

Kelly was 71 and had been battling ovarian cancer since February 2019, about one year after she retired.

As the vice president of development for Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and the executive director of The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation, Kelly organized countless fundraising events ranging from golf tournaments and luncheons to formal gala dinners. She also managed domestic and international racing meetings, including The Jockey Club’s annual Round Table Conference on Matters Pertaining to Racing and multiple editions of the Pan Am Conference in New York.

Kelly had worked in the clubhouse-relations department of the New York Racing Association before chairman Dinny Phipps, who became a longtime friend and cherished colleague, recruited her to join The Jockey Club staff in 1985.

“Nancy had hundreds if not thousands of friends throughout the Thoroughbred industry, and she was as universally respected and admired as much as anyone I’ve ever known,” Jockey Club chairperson Stuart Janney said. “She was the face of The Jockey Club in many ways, and no one was ever a better representative of our organization. Our sincere condolences go out to her entire family.”

Kelly, a native of New Hyde Park, N.Y., and a resident of Westbury, N.Y., maintained a longstanding and deep appreciation for the backstretch community and served in a variety of key volunteer roles in the creation and development of several Belmont Park-based organizations. Among them were the Belmont Child Care Association and the New York Race Track Chaplaincy.

She was named president of the chaplaincy shortly after retiring from The Jockey Club at the end of 2017 but stepped aside shortly after that due to her illness. From then on, she served as the vice president and as a board member.

“This is a sad day for anyone who ever knew Nancy, and that includes all the racetrack chaplains around the country with whom she worked on a regular basis,” said Humberto Chavez, the lead chaplain and executive director of the New York Racetrack Chaplaincy. “She was a humanitarian in every sense of the word and took great joy in helping others.”

Although Kelly avoided the limelight, she often was honored by organizations and community groups for her service to the industry and nearby communities. She received the Race Track Chaplaincy of America’s award of excellence, the Jockeys’ Guild’s Eddie Arcaro award presented annually to a person who shows exceptional commitment to jockeys and the organization and the New York Turf Writers Association’s Red Smith Good Guy award.

Kelly is survived by her sister Fran Dtugokenski, brother-in-law Ray Dtugokenski, nieces Lisa Locurto and Michelle Mirabile, four grand nieces and two grand nephews. Kelly’s late husband Jack Kelly, an Equibase chart caller and field supervisor, preceded her in death in November 2010 after a long battle with polycythemia.

A wake will be held Monday at 9 a.m. EST at the Leo F. Kearns Funeral Home, 445 East Meadow Avenue, East Meadow, N.Y. It will be followed by a Mass at 11 a.m. EST at St. Brigid Catholic Church, 85 Post Avenue, Westbury, N.Y.

The family requests donations be made to The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation, the New York Race Track Chaplaincy or the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

Donations in Nancy Kelly’s name may be made to The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation through its website tjcfoundation.org or by check payable to The Jockey Club Safety Net Foundation, 250 Park Avenue, Suite 2020, New York, N.Y. 10177. Donations to the New York Racetrack Chaplaincy may be made through its website rtcany.org or by sending a check payable to the New York Racetrack Chaplaincy, P.O. Box 37191, Elmont, N.Y. 11003. Donations to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center may be made at giving.mskcc.org or by sending a check payable to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Office of Development, P.O. Box 27106, New York, N.Y. 10087.