On the Monday after the Kentucky Derby, the people at Father Maloney’s Boys’ Haven will celebrate a new addition to their campus off Goldsmith Lane with the completion of an old-fashioned barn raising.

But the new building — a barn with stalls for up to 10 horses — represents more than just new walls and a roof. It is part of a new venture for Boys’ Haven, a program that will also raise the hopes of both the young people it serves and the area’s thriving equine industry.

The 10-stall, two-story barn includes a classroom on its second floor, and the building will serve as the headquarters of the agency’s newly created equine program.

Under the direction of Jay Wilkinson, a retired Louisville police officer and licensed trainer of both Thoroughbred and standardbred race horses, the program will train Boys’ Haven youngsters for entry-level positions in the horse industry.

They’ll learn to handle horses and all that goes with it — cleaning stalls, caring for the animals, working as hot walkers and barn assistants. Eventually, they could advance to become exercise riders or drivers, or perhaps a blacksmiths assistant.

Further down the road, they might also become trainers, assistant trainers or full-fledged blacksmiths, said Jim Grote, director of development for Boys’ Haven. The program currently has 10 young people who, with a little help, have built the barn and erected the fencing around the three acres of property that will be used by the equine program.

These first trainees will complete the initial six-month training period and then be replaced by the next class of 10, Grote explained.

“There is a need for a stable supply of entry-level workers in the horse industry,” he noted. “This program will help fill that need, and it will provide our kids with valuable training and steady, above-minimum-wage jobs, too.”

Along the way, the program plans to become accredited by the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association in order to provide a therapy program using the horses kept at the newly-built barn.

“We’re going to have a covered walk-way,” Grote said. “But most importantly, we’re going to have a program that provides valuable training for kids in jobs where there’s a steady need for workers.”

The idea for the program grew out of Boys’ Haven’s Venture Committee — Jim Ogburn, a retired businessman; Mark Campisano of Campisano Properties Co.; David Miles, president of Process Machinery Inc.; Donald Kalmey, retired professor of business administration; Steve Mingus, vice-president and partner of Branham Corp.; Don Spath, president of the AE Group; and investment banker John Sweeney.

At first the committee and Jay Wilkinson looked at perhaps creating a lawn service program for youngsters, Wilkinson said.

“But to be honest the kids weren’t too excited about that,” he acknowledged. “We wanted to give them something that would have a future and that paid more than minimum wage, and the more we thought about it and the more we talked to people in the horse industry, the more we realized that this would be a good fit.”

Wilkinson retired in 2000 after 26 years as a police officer. During those years, he came in contact with a lot of young people who either were connected with Boys’ Haven or who came to be residents there for various reasons.

“I started volunteering here,” he said. “I’d bring one of the police buses and take them down to the gym, and we’d work out or play basketball.”

Over the years, Boys’ Haven became such a part of Wilkinson’s life that, after retirement, he went to work for the agency. He also has more than 20 years of experience as a trainer of both Thoroughbred and standardbred horses. At one time he had 17 Thoroughbreds housed at Churchill Downs, and a couple of years ago he had a horse run in the prestigious Bluegrass Stakes at Keeneland race course in Lexington, Ky.

In other words, he knows the horse business. Couple that with his compassion for those being served by Boys’ Haven and you have a bit of serendipity that benefits everybody.

“We’re in the 55th day of the program, building this barn and fencing,” Wilkinson said last week at Boys’ Haven. “And these 10 kids are showing up every day, working hard and taking pride in being a part of something new and important.”

“Most of these kids haven’t worked two weeks in their lives,” he continued. “They might have had a minimum wage job somewhere with no training and no future. And then they get mad or get fired and the job goes nowhere.”

The training they’re getting in the new equine program, however, won’t lead to a dead end if the young people have a desire to make their mark.

“This program is probably best for those kids who aren’t going to be heading to college,” Grote explained. “It will allow them to get entry-level jobs that the horse industry often has trouble filling or keeping filled. The jobs pay higher than minimum wage, and since there’s a lot of turnover in the industry, there will be jobs available when our kids finish their six months of training.”

The program’s budget is about $220,000 for the first year, Grote said. So far, about $135,000 has been raised to fund it, with initial grants of $30,000 coming from the Al and Guy Campisano Family Trust and $25,000 from the Louisville Community Foundation. Other contributors include Doug and Susan Byars, Joseph Elmore, the Kentucky Equine Education Project, Kentucky Foster Youth Transition Assistance and Nicholas X. Simon.

The program’s advisory committee includes John Asher, vice-president of racing communications at Churchill Downs; veterinarian Doug Byars; and Marc Guilfoil, director of Standardbred Racing for the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority.

Boys’ Haven has been given its first two horses, including, Grote said, a $70,000 Thoroughbred donated by a woman from New Jersey. Wilkinson said the plan is to claim another five racing Thoroughbreds in the near future, and he noted that the program has a real need for a good “out-pony.”

“We’re really excited about getting this off the ground,” Wilkinson said. “We believe this thing has a real future, and the training it will be providing to these youngsters will give them a chance at a real future, too.”

A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the barn will be held at 1 p.m. May 7 on the grounds of Boys’ Haven at 2301 Goldsmith Lane. Archbishop Thomas C. Kelly will be on hand to bless the barn and the program.

Those interested in helping fund the program by donating a horse or helping in any other way can reach Grote, Boys’ Haven’s development director, at 458-1171, ext. 108.