Charles C. Fenwick Jr.
The Temple Gwathmey Fund, a longstanding charitable trust within the steeplechase community that supports race meets, amateurism, and projects targeting future growth of jump racing, has named Charles C. Fenwick Jr. as a trustee.
Fenwick was selected by current trustees William Pape, a prominent owner who served as president of the National Steeplechase Association in the 1980s and 1990s, and John von Stade, formerly chairman of the Far Hills Races and the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. He succeeds Charles T. Colgan, the retired NSA executive vice president who died in January.
“I am humbled and honored to be named a trustee of the Temple Gwathmey Fund,” Fenwick said. “The Temple Gwathmey Fund makes very important contributions to the present and future of our sport, and I look forward to serving with Bill and John on the Fund’s projects.”
A resident of Butler, Md., Fenwick has distinguished himself in the steeplechase sport as a jockey, trainer, owner, and race chairman. While serving as an executive in the automotive-sales industry, he was the premier timber jockey of his era and rode Ben Nevis II to victory in the 1980 Grand National at Aintree, England. As a trainer, he guided Dogwood Stable’s Inlander to the 1987 Eclipse Award as champion steeplechase horse.
More recently, he has been a member of the Bruton Street-US partnership that campaigned 2017 Eclipse Award winner Scorpiancer, and he owns 2017 timber champion Doc Cebu. He was instrumental in launching the Shawan Downs race meet in suburban Baltimore and serves as its race chairman.
He recently was elected president of the National Steeplechase Foundation, whose goals—promoting steeplechase racing and amateurism—parallel those of the Temple Gwathmey Fund.
The fund was named for James Temple Gwathmey, a Virginia native who was a successful cotton merchant and served as president of the New York Cotton Exchange. The race that bears his name was first run at Belmont Park in 1924, the year of his death at age 57. Eight years later, his son J. Temple Gwathmey Jr., an amateur jockey, died in a racing accident in New Jersey at age 23.
Among its charitable endeavors, the Temple Gwathmey Fund provides support to race meets in staging their programs, improving race courses to enhance safety for horses and jockeys, and generating funds for the race meets’ charitable beneficiaries. For example, the Temple Gwathmey Fund supports the Middleburg Spring Races in Virginia, where the Temple Gwathmey Handicap (Gr. 2) will be run on Saturday, April 21.
On the eve of the Middleburg Spring meet, the Temple Gwathmey Fund will support a fund-raising cocktail party for the National Steeplechase Foundation at the National Sporting Library & Museum in Middleburg. For further information and to obtain tickets for the April 20 event, please go to http://www.nationalsteeplechasefoundation.org/product/april-fundraiser-tickets/ or call the NSF office at (410) 995-7097.