RTCA National Service Center

In addition to the governance of the Board of Directors, RTCA has a staffed National Service Center, located in Lexington, KY, to oversee the day-to-day operations of the organization. The staff works to maintain and strengthen the network of Chaplaincies by providing:

 

Chaplain Recruitment & Screening
Chaplain Education
Ministry Resources
Benevolence
Council Funding
Council Start-Up & Guidance
Annual Chaplain School & National Conference
Best Practices Implementation
Relationship building with Track Management, Horseman Groups, and other Industry Partners
And more...

  • Dan Waits

    Executive Director

    Dan, a Central Kentucky native, calls Lexington home along with his wife Gail and their son Corey. The family regularly attends Southland Christian Church in Lexington.  Outside of work, Dan enjoys F3 (a men's faith-based workout group), hiking, mountain biking, golf, fishing, and running an occasional 5K (for the t-shirt).


    Before taking on the role of Executive Director of RTCA, Dan served as the Executive Pastor at two Kentucky churches.  He also has extensive business and planning experience, serving as an Executive Director in the Kentucky Governor’s Office for Local Development, and as a Program/Account Manager for two of the largest automotive manufacturers in the world–Asahi Glass Corporation and Johnson Controls.  He is a graduate of Southwest Bible College & Seminary (M.A.) and Eastern Kentucky University (B.B.A.).

  • Omar Aracena

    DIRECTOR OF ADVANCEMENT AND OPERATIONS

    Born in The Dominican Republic, Jose “Omar” Aracena came to the United States in 1993 to continue his High School education in New York. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Organizational Management from The King’s College and just acquired his Private Pilot Certificate. Prior to moving to Kentucky, Omar served as an Associate Pastor in Long Island, NY for three years.


    Omar’s involvement with RTCA began as a volunteer with the New York Race Track Chaplaincy, where he served as an ESL teacher and recruiter. In 2013, God called Omar to expand his service from the local Chaplaincy to the national organization as the Director of Operations & Administration for the National Service Center in Lexington, Kentucky. Here in Lexington Omar has had the opportunity to translate partial interviews from Spanish to English for the book “Canonero II: The Rags to Riches Story of the Kentucky Derby’s Most Improbable Winner” by Award-winning author Milton C. Toby JD.


    Omar and his wife Betsy have made Lexington home, along with their five children Deborah-Jael, Immanuel, Micah, Katherine-Isabella, and Jordan-River.

  • Sandy Martin

    ADMINISTRATIVE aSSISTANT

    Sandy was born in Ohio but raised in Kentucky. She is a member of the Man O' War Church where she is a Sunday School teacher and a member of the church choir. Sandy and her husband Chaz have one daughter, Jordyn, who is attending college. The family's favorite activity would most definitely be boating in TN at Dale Hollow Lake. 


    1 Cor 15:58