ATLANTA – On Feb. 2 just outside of Seattle, Wash., Emerald Downs racetrack opened for winter training. Along with more than 300 racehorses that moved into the racetrack’s stables came hundreds of caretakers. 

Mostly Hispanic migrant workers, these caretakers do everything from groom and saddle horses to lift hay bales and clean stalls. It equates to long hours, low pay and a hard life, where they’re often invisible or overlooked – but not to Cooperative Baptist Fellowship field personnel Diann and Phil Whisnand. 

As racetrack chaplains, the Whisnands are a spiritual presence on the “backside” of the Emerald Downs track, where nearly 800 workers, mostly migrants, will live and work through the end of racing season in October. 

By opening race day in mid-April, the number of racehorses at Emerald Downs grows to more than 1,250 racehorses – many of which earn less racing than what it costs to feed and care for them. With slim profit margins, workers are paid often below minimum wage, making it nearly impossible to afford living anywhere but the backside’s dorm rooms or in a small tack room with saddles, bridles and other equipment.

The backside is like “a small town in the middle of nowhere,” said the Whisnands, natives of Midland, Texas, complete with its own celebrations, defeats, good times and bad. And for all of that, the Whisnands are there, supporting an isolated, mostly male Hispanic population in the northwestern United States.

In the horse racing world, the Whisnands said Hispanics are often hired by horse trainers for their widely-known skill with high-spirited horses. In the off-season, some workers will move with the horses to another farm or training facility, and others might return home to their families in Mexico and Central and South America for a brief visit before returning to the track. 

“For many, it is a life of dangerous work, isolation, loneliness, alcohol, drugs, depression, suicide and even murder,” said Phil, a graduate of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. “We are there to offer them hope.”

Usually wearing a hat or coat with “CHAPLAIN” on it, the Whisnands are easy to notice and often called upon to help. Once, Phil was called to a barn, where a worker had just died of a heart attack. Later he delivered the devastating news to the man’s wife, who asked the Whisnands to conduct the funeral in a racetrack facility.

“It was an opportunity to speak to the whole backside about life after death,” said Diann, a graduate of the University of Texas in Austin, Texas.

The Whisnands offer chapel services and Bible studies in English and Spanish. Diann leads Spanish and English songs, and sometimes a worker brings an instrument and plays.  Phil preaches, and during one sermon about forgiveness, a man interrupted and asked why he should forgive people in that room who were mean to him. Phil encouraged him to do as Jesus said, looking at his own heart before blaming others.

“The man agreed and said he’d give it a try,” Phil said.

By the end of racing season, trust is built and some workers will linger after chapel or dinner to meet with the Whisnands about personal struggles or for spiritual counseling. Diann also looks for ways to specifically minister to the few women working at the track.

In a given week, the Whisnands’ ministry might include providing food, clothes, medicine and transportation to the doctor. Sometimes they visit the hospital when a worker has been injured. And most recently they have started a program to help connect addiction counselors to the many workers who fight loneliness and isolation through alcohol and drug use. “Without affordable or free intervention, it can easily spiral out of control,” Diann said. 

More and more the Whisnands are expanding the ministry to involve churches and Christians, who by helping with the ministry can minister in an international setting without leaving the United States. Already some churches gather clothes and blankets to donate or provide an occasional hot meal for workers, who may be “down to their last dollar” and worried about when their next meal will be.

One 75-year-old woman sponsored a migrant family for a Christmas outreach project.  Though she was nervous about interacting with people of another culture and language, she found purpose in the experience and wants to help again.

“Helping people discover and fulfill their God-given mission, even if they are 75 years old, is very worthwhile,” Diann said.

The Whisnands know a little something about joining God on mission. In 2005, after years of involvement in short-term missions in Mexico and Peru, Phil, a veterinarian, and Diann, an educator, left their jobs to be commissioned as CBF field personnel. As certified chaplains with Racetrack Chaplaincy of America, they began their work at Hollywood Park racetrack in Los Angeles and moved to Emerald Downs in 2008.

“I really feel at home when I am walking on the backstretch and talking with the workers, sharing God’s love,” Phil said.

“Christ was born in a manger, and that’s exactly the lowly place in which our ministry takes place. We walk with these ‘manger dwellers,’ talk with them, eat with them, and pray with them. We are their trusted friend. They can depend upon us for help,” Diann said.

As with many CBF field personnel, the Whisnands are financially supported through CBF’s Offering for Global Missions, which provides for operating expenses, salaries and life-changing ministries.

“The Offering allows us to live and work in the Seattle area. It provides a way for us to live out being the presence of Christ everyday,” Diann said.

To support the Whisnands and other CBF field personnel, please give the CBF Offering. Online contributions can be made at www.thefellowship.info/give.

CBF is a fellowship of Baptist Christians and churches who share a passion for the Great Commission and a commitment to Baptist principles of faith and practice. The Fellowship’s mission is to serve Christians and churches as they discover and fulfill their God-given mission.