Churchill Downs Entertainment Announces Partnership With Make-A-Wish Foundation®

Mar 29, 2010

Wishes to be Granted for Children During July 23-25 HullabaLOU Music Festival

Churchill Downs Entertainment Group (CDE) will connect deserving children involved with the Make-A-Wish Foundation® with their favorite musical artists as part of a joint partnership for the inaugural HullabaLOU Music Festival, scheduled for July 23-25 at Churchill Downs Racetrack in Louisville, Ky.

The music festival, featuring more than 65 acts and showcasing headliners Bon Jovi, Kenny Chesney and Dave Mathews Band, will offer a wide array of musical tastes and is designed to be a major entertainment event in the Greater Louisville area.

“The Make-A-Wish Foundation has strong regional and national appeal, and will be a great partner for our new entertainment entity and its first major event, HullabaLOU,” said CDE President Steve Sexton. “We have the opportunity to make dreams come true by granting wishes to Make-A-Wish children who will have the chance to meet HullabaLOU Music Festival artists. CDE will also offer Make-A-Wish financial support. We look forward to working with the Make-A-Wish Foundation this year and to establishing a lasting relationship with the organization.”

Through the partnership, the Make-A-Wish Foundation will oversee the HullabaLOU volunteer efforts and promote HullabaLOU to thousands of contributors in the Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio. The Make-A-Wish Foundation, which has about 900 active volunteers throughout the three-state region, will train and schedule 350 volunteers for HullabaLOU to assist with festival operations throughout the Churchill Downs’ infield and 147-acre property.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation will also benefit from a special HullabaLOU VIP auction package to be announced in the coming weeks.  

“We are extremely grateful to Churchill Downs Entertainment for providing financial support to our organization while partnering with us to grant several wishes for local children battling life-threatening medical conditions,” said Dan Koett, executive director of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, Kentucky Region. “We believe HullabaLOU will be a fantastic entertainment event for our community and look forward to being part of this unique experience.”

For more information about the HullabaLOU Music Festival, including a complete list of performers and reserved seating options please go to www.hullabaloufest.com, and follow HullabaLOU news and updates on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HullabaLOUfest.

Apply for volunteer opportunies click here.

About Churchill Downs Entertainment
Churchill Downs Entertainment (“CDE”) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Churchill Downs Incorporated (“CDI”) located in Louisville, Ky., that was formed to conceive, develop, produce and manage large-scale entertainment events at CDI and non-CDI properties. The immediate success of headline concerts by the Rolling Stones (2006) and The Police (2007) at the historic home of the Kentucky Derby led to the creation of CDE, which is also based in Louisville.

About the Make-A-Wish Foundation®
The Make-A-Wish Foundation® grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, Kentucky Region fulfilled the individual wishes of 671 local children since the Kentucky Region was founded in 2001. Currently, we have more than 146 pending wishes. You can help share the power of a wish® by contributing financially, donating frequent flyer miles, adopting a wish or remembering the Make-A-Wish Foundation in your planned giving by calling (866) 487-9474.  For more information, visit our web site at www.makeawishky.org.