Sierra Leone and Brook Smith shine a light on Backside Learning Center

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00:00Sierra Leone is a popular pick going into this year's Kentucky Derby, but many members

00:07of the backside at Churchill Downs will be rooting for the Colt based on more than just

00:10his past performances.

00:12The son of gunrunner is owned in part by Brooke Smith, and he will be representing the Purses

00:17for a Purpose program at the Backside Learning Center.

00:22When you're in a situation like this, you just want to, sharing is the best thing, either

00:26with your partners or the people around the shed row here, it's everybody's moment, everybody's

00:35horse.

00:36The way it's worked out, because my horses are in the program, yeah, it's going to put

00:41a lot of spotlight on the Backside Learning Center, and obviously the horses race well

00:46and just want some purses, so they're getting some good income to fund their programming

00:51out of it.

00:53Sierra Leone is the first Purses for a Purpose horse who will be a Derby contender, so very

00:59high profile, and I think for us here, really exciting in that it sets a precedent for a

01:08team that is so high profile and getting so much exposure around Derby to really make

01:16an example of if you're fortunate enough to own horses and you're doing well from it,

01:22just to figure out a way to give back to those who are working behind the scenes and

01:27making it all possible.

01:30If we could get 150 horses into the Backside Learning Center's Purses for a Purpose during

01:35the 150th Derby, even if it's, again, 1%, like I said, it moves the needle, it's so

01:41important and it could make a big difference.

01:44Brooke is just an incredible, very generous person.

01:48He has such a great heart and his belief in our mission and just respect for the workers

01:54back here and for all that goes into making the industry happen.

01:59We're just really incredibly fortunate to have him in our lives, and we're hoping that

02:03this is just the beginning of, hopefully we have maybe one Derby horse a year, it would

02:09be incredible.

02:11This is vital and important and it's a community and this is the Backside, so they work here,

02:17they live here, sometimes it's difficult for them to get out of the Backside, I mean,

02:23it's multi-faceted, it does so many different things for the community that supports the horses.

02:28As soon as, probably Monday after Derby, we will start planning our 20th anniversary celebration

02:34and just so excited and proud of all of our growth and everything that we have evolved

02:40into since 2004 when our doors opened here.

02:44The fact that we've opened up our programming to families and children, really, that was

02:50an important gap that we needed to fill and just feel like we're doing important things

02:55and really transforming lives back here.

02:59Every morning I wake up and think, wow, okay, haven't been sleeping great, and I wake up

03:05and I'm trying not to look at my phone, and so really just wanting the horse to continue

03:12to do as well as he has, he's in great hands, everything seems to be, you know, kind of

03:17lining up, certainly has a good mind, a good spirit, he just loves to be out there, whether

03:21it's training or racing, hopefully it'll be a race where we look at the top of the stretch

03:29and here he comes again.