Racing toward kindness: Ken Freirich inspires culture of giving in horse racing
- betterworldrecords
- Oct 27
- 3 min read
Philanthropist and racehorse owner Ken Freirich aims to transform the industry by encouraging more donations and charity to be given to worthy causes.
His most recent contributions include a multi-year $500,000 contribution to the Breeders' Cup, which he has been partnered with since 2023. He also matched donations at the Breeders' Cup annual day of giving, which raised $196,000 to benefit several different charities.
He matched donations up to $50,000 for the Breeders' Cup "Champions give back" campaign. He will be matching any donations at breederscup.com/charities leading up to the race that takes place on Friday. He also presented $100,000 to four Thoroughbred aftercare charities at the Kentucky Derby.
"I really want to try and encourage everyone in the industry to give more because, as I've gotten to spend time with the beneficiaries and recipients of those gifts and others that I've been involved in, I've recognized a great need," Freirich said. "These organizations do fantastic work, but they need more resources. My gifts were really more of a message to the industry to give more, and we need to do it now to plan for the future."
Freirich first got into the racehorse industry about 17 years ago as an owner through a syndicate called West Point Thoroughbreds. He has been a long-time partner of West Point and CEO and founder, Terry Finley.
At the start of his career, the horses were passive investments, Freirich said, because he did not have the time to spend around them due to his other business. Since his retirement, he's been able to be around the horses and the trainers, and other people involved in the industry. The extra time he has had has given him the ability to try and make a point of creating a culture of giving within the horse industry.
Through one of the national organizations he works with, the Race Track Chaplaincy of America, the effects can be felt locally through the Race Track Chaplaincy of Arkansas and its work at Oaklawn. The organization provides year-round services to the back stretch workers, such as Bible studies, English as a Second Language classes, Al-Anon and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, a food bank and a clothes closet. They also provide a chapel as a recreational building in the winter.
Freirich has a connection to Oaklawn and the Hot Springs community as he is a minority owner of the horse Sandman, who won the Arkansas Derby earlier this year. He also plans on having some horses compete at Oaklawn in the upcoming race season.
"I really had a wonderful experience at Oaklawn and in Hot Springs," Freirich said. "The people are fantastic. The hospitality is incredible. And to be there and watch Sandman win that very prestigious race was awesome. It was an absolutely thrilling and exhilarating experience."
Charity has been an important part of Freirich's life as he feels it is a responsibility he wants to uphold. He said that he tries to do random acts of kindness or make charitable contributions every day in his life. It's not just within the racehorse industry; it is with children, music and many other types of organizations.
"I feel like my mission in life is to spread kindness and make the world a better place. I've been fortunate that I've been very successful in business, been retired now almost five years. But most importantly, I feel like we all have a responsibility to make this world better than it was before we started in it."
During the COVID-19 pandemic , Freirich started a music group called Random Acts of Kindness and a record label called Better World Records.
He collaborates with multiple artists and producers within the group. The group's first hit was "Free to Roam," which was a Billboard adult contemporary Top-20 song, Freirich said. The group will release a new single called "I wish" on all platforms Wednesday.
Freirich described it as an angelic ballad with deep, meaningful lyrics about inspiring hope and positive aspirations in the world. They will be performing the song Friday at the Breeders' Cup with the help of the San Diego Children's Choir in front of 50,000 spectators.
