Fundraiser for jockey Douglas to be held June 26-28

Stretch Run Sporting Club and Grille OTB will hold a fundraiser for injured Arlington Park jockey Rene Douglas on Friday through Sunday, June 26-28, at its downtown location at the corner of Ohio and LaSalle.

There will be designated "Make a Wager for Rene" boxes set up throughout the facility in which fans can drop in winning tickets, vouchers or cash donations for Douglas, who injured his spinal cord in a spill at Arlington on May 23, underwent more than seven hours of surgery that night and remains in ICU at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

"Our main focus is to have a fundraiser for Rene and his family for any expenses they are incurring now," said Dave Peduzzi, operations manager at Stretch Run. "At the end of the weekend, we're looking forward to presenting them with a check to use for anything they can benefit from."

Though there have been no commitments yet, the folks at Stretch Run are hoping to attract Chicago sports celebrities and people in the racing industry to the event.

Stretch Run is open daily at 11 a.m. For more information, please visit stretchrunchicago.com.