by Jerry Connors, secretary, USHWA

Harrisburg, PA — Mary Lou Dondarski, operations manager of the Hambletonian Society/Breeders Crown and an unflappable, tireless contributor to many of the sport’s major organizations and events, and Art Strozewski, whose Bow River Jewelry is the premier provider of equine-related jewelry and expands on his harness fandom to support many of the sport’s major groups, have been voted Honorary Members of the United States Harness Writers Association in an election conducted among the media organization’s directors.

Honorary Membership is voted by the harness writers to people making important contributions to harness racing or to USHWA, but are not active members of the media. Dondarski and Strozewski will become the 50th and 51st Honorary Members of the Association, a grouping which includes 20 Hall of Famers past and present such as John Campbell, Delvin Miller, E. Roland Harriman and George Morton Levy.

Mary Lou Dondarski

Dondarski has been a fan of harness racing for most of her life, and worked as the manager of the race office at Freehold Raceway before beginning work at her current position.

A previous honoree of USHWA through a President’s Award, Dondarski is at home in virtually every aspect of the sport: she was an originator of the now-popular act of bringing a small bag of carrots for the “real hero” of the winner’s circle — the horse — after major stakes races; she assists the Harness Racing Museum with exhibits, especially those concerning Greyhound and the Hambletonian to which she has contributed many items from her own private collection; and her donated paintings have assisted the coffers of many of the sport’s nonprofit auctions.

USHWA photos

Art Strozewski

Strozewski is President of Bow River Jewelry Company, an Ohio-based concern which started with one store in a mall and in the next 25 years expanded to a chain, then sold off their mall holdings to specialize in the equine jewelry which is their trademark today.

Their custom-designed pieces are considered the standard in harness racing, and Bow River exhibits at major trade functions are among the most popular attractions. Like Dondarski, Strozewski has supported nonprofit fundraising efforts, and was given the Service to Youth Award in 2008 by the Harness Horse Youth Foundation for this type of generosity.

The awards to Dondarski and Strozewski, along with the Dan Patch Horse of the Year and additional human award trophies, will be presented on Sunday (February 22) in Orlando, Fla. Tickets for this gala event, the Dan Patch Awards Banquet–Night of Champions, are now available.

Tickets for the Dan Patch Awards Banquet are now available and can be reserved via telephone or e-mail by contacting Judy Davis-Wilson at 302.359.3630 or e-mail zoe8874@aol.com or Steve Wolf at 954.654.3757 or e-mail stevenwolf1956@gmail.com.

Substantial savings on hotel rooms can be attained for this event, which is being held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Orlando at SeaWorld. A special rate of $115 can be reserved by calling 407.352.1100 before Jan. 25, 2015, and mentioning code: Dan Patch or by clicking this link.

The deadline for the Dan Patch Awards journal is Monday (Jan. 26). To advertise in the souvenir journal, please contact Chris Tully by calling 845.807.7538 or e-mail tullytrot@yahoo.com.

All of this information and applicable advertising forms can be accessed via internet link www.USHWA.org.