ABA Gives Back in Louisville

Every January, ABA welcomes the travel and tourism community to the first conference of the year: ABA's Marketplace, the industry's premier business event.

This year, ABA Gives Back will support the independent nonprofit Backside Learning Center at Churchill Downs. Read on to learn how you can help.

ABA Marketplace is a gathering where more than 3,500 tour operators, suppliers and exhibitors come together to kick off a new year of business opportunity and growth.

Since Marketplace 2007, ABA Gives Back has raised more than $347,000 for local charities. Each year, the Marketplace Advisory Committee selects a charity—with a tie to the host city—to raise funds for during the week of ABA Marketplace.

In 2019, attendees will support the Backside Learning Center, an independent nonprofit organization serving the equine workers and families at Churchill Downs. They provide adult education programs, afterschool and summer youth programs, and social services. Their goal is to build community and enrich the lives of equine workers and families by providing the educational opportunities and resources they need to empower themselves and their children.

How You Can Make a Difference While Attending ABA Marketplace 2019:

• Purchase souvenirs like photos, horseshoes and ball caps at the Backside Learning Center booth on the show floor.
• Add to your collection with a limited-edition Backside Learning Center Evan Williams bourbon bottle.
• At Sunday's Juleps, Jockeys & Generosity evening event, purchase a mint julep cup, a photo op with legendary jockey Pat Day, and/or a Thoroughbred meet and greet.
• Buy tickets for a raffle to win two 2019 Kentucky Derby tickets. (Raffle tickets are available prior to Marketplace through this special link, as well as at the Gives Back booth and the Juleps, Jockeys and Generosity event.)
• Donate to the cause at various donation boxes located throughout the Marketplace.
• Shop Local Louisville on the show floor, where a percentage of all proceeds will be donated.

ABA's Marketplace is truly a market place—an active, vibrant forum of buyers and sellers where business gets done. With more than 140,000 prescheduled appointments and 800 prequalified operators, Marketplace offers a year's worth of sales meetings in one week. Do some good while getting your hustle on!

Written by Sarah Suydam, Staff Writer for Groups Today.