A summer Sunday afternoon of championship polo will provide the setting as the Old Westbury College Foundation, Inc. continues its effort to raise funds to restore the historic Clark Family Stables, located on the campus of the State University of New York College at Old Westbury.

Presented in cooperation with the Meadowbrook Polo Club and The Smithtown Hunt Club, the benefit polo match and lawn party will be held on Sunday, July 13, from 3-6 p.m. at Hickox Field, located on Whitney Lane in Old Westbury. Tickets for the benefit polo match are $75 per person, with children under the age of 12 admitted at no charge.

"Our friends and neighbors continue to tell us how pleased they are that these wonderful stables will be restored," said Foundation Chair Robert McMillan. "Once complete, these stables will serve as a valuable resource both for the college and the community, offering the college's students and its neighbors alike opportunities to learn about and enjoy equestrian activities."

The 2003 event follows up on the success of the Old Westbury College Foundation's inaugural event last summer, which generated approximately $20,000 in support of the stable rehabilitation project. Sponsors for this year's event include Land Rover; The Smithtown Hunt Club; Liberty Title Agency and its president, Brian Madden; Big Apple Tire; Bryan Lazarus; and Foundation Chair Robert McMillan.

To rehabilitate the Clark Family Stables, which have been unused since the 1980s, the foundation has set a fund-raising target of $1 million. Originally called the F. Ambrose Clark Racing Stables, the college's equestrian-related facilities include a two-story open air facility featuring a covered promenade and an internal courtyard, a quarter-mile track, riding circles, and outdoor shed-row stables.

The Meadowbrook Polo Club is among the most historic polo clubs in the nation, with its roots dating back to 1877. The club participated in the first-ever polo match on Long Island, setting the stage for the region's role as "polo capital of the world" during the 1920s. The club recaptured that title in 1994 when it served as host to the U.S. Open Polo Championship, the premier event in American polo. Today, the Meadowbrook Polo Club draws crowds of up to 1,500 for its matches, which are held either at Hickox Field or Bethpage State Park on Sundays from late May through early October.

The Smithtown Hunt was founded in 1900 as a fox hunting club. Today, the Smithtown Hunt maintains the time honored traditions and etiquette associated with the sport by using an artificial scent to simulate the fox. The Smithtown Hunt retains the excitement of the chase, with riding and non-riding members enjoying the thrill as they follow hounds through beautiful undeveloped countryside. As a non-profit tax-exempt organization, the club focuses also on charitable purposes beneficial to public interest, with a primary focus on programs and activities supporting conservation, preservation and education.

The Old Westbury College Foundation, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to assisting SUNY College at Old Westbury in becoming the flagship Arts & Sciences College in the SUNY system. Directed by its board, the foundation solicits gifts, grants and endowments that enhance the educational, research and community service mission of the college. Funds raised through foundation activities, help bridge the gap between tuition and operating expenses at the college, and ensure that Old Westbury's students have the best educational experience possible.