2003 TCA Auction

Ellen & Herb Moelis Awarded
The TOBA Industry Service Award

Herb and Ellen Moelis

All it takes is one good idea...and years of dedication and hard work. What started out as a small, homemade event by Herb and Ellen Moelis in 1991 to raise money for the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation has grown and evolved into the formation of Thoroughbred Charities of America, which is believed to be the largest distributor of charitable funds in the industry. Their annual gala and charity auction, held at their CandyLand Farm near Middletown, Del., raised more than $1.5 million last December. In June, Thoroughbred Charities of America granted more than $1 million to 85 separate equine charities—the fourth straight year that the grants topped the seven-figure mark. Successful in business—Herb as a certified public accountant and tax attorney, and Ellen as the owner of a property management company in New York—they purchased CandyLand Farm in 1986. After a few years of commuting back and forth, they left the city and settled in at CandyLand where they have found success both breeding and racing. Their broodmare band now numbers about 20. Feeling the urge to give something back to the Thoroughbred industry—”We felt like we had to do something,” Ellen said—the Moelises joined forces with neighbor and good friend Allaire du Pont to have a stallion season auction to raise money for the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation. It was a good start, as about 20 people helped raise $15,000. But the Moelises knew they could do better. Each year, the event continued to grow, and once it began to top $300,000, Herb thought they should start spreading the wealth to other worthy equine charities. It was in 1997 that Thoroughbred Charities of America was founded. TCA’s gala and charity auction is no one-night operation. The Moelises work tirelessly throughout the year to put together not only that event, but others such as last month’s charity golf event in Saratoga. The stallion seasons from farms and syndicates that they coax for their annual auction are the meat of the auction, but they also include a wide array of Thoroughbred collectibles, memorabilia, books, and various odds and ends. One of the highlights of the auction are du Pont’s needlepoint chairs that she works on throughout the year specifically for the event. In mid-August, she was putting the finishing stitches on one. “I’ve been needlepointing for them for many, many years,” du Pont said. “They’re wonderful people and they’re my best friends. They have a lot of enthusiasm for the TCA.” Their enthusiasm may be an understatement. “If they ever decide to pass it along, it will take six people to do the job they are doing,” said Liz Harris, the newly appointed executive director of TCA. “They are completely dedicated to the cause. They never stop working.” Harris should know; she’s Ellen’s niece. Harris, a transplanted New Yorker now living in Midway, Ky., has helped with gathering seasons in Kentucky. She also works with Cross Gate Gallery’s Greg Ladd. Ladd, a longtime friend of the Moelises, started hosting a satellite party in 2001 in Lexington, with simulcast bidding from his Main Street gallery in Lexington. “They have the complete commitment,” Harris said. “Their idea is that we need to do even more. It’s good for the industry, for the fans from a marketing standpoint; they want to know what’s happening to the horses." “They are extremely dedicated,” Harris continued. “They have a sense of obligation to the industry. Herb says, ‘I can get this done’...and he does.” The Thoroughbred industry is thankful for all the Moelises have done, and will continue to do not just for the industry, but for the horse.
By Evan I. Hammonds