KINGSTON, Jamaica - Grooming a horse is a labour-intensive job, even for the most slavish of men.
This is a job that calls for a variety of skills, experience, time, and dedication. And between all of that, the groom has to maintain a family, at times being a dad and a spouse.
Mark Collins, who has been grooming and swimming horses at Caymanas Park for more than 30 years .
For Collins, being the sole breadwinner of a family consisting of his spouse Latoya Sutton and four children (two of whom are biologically his) comes with more than just the responsibility of financing the household.
Collins said that at times he struggles with the stress and as he exhausts the clock for the sake of dependents — son, Markodean Collins, 10; daughter, Ishawna Collins, 6; stepson, Jaquan Thorpe, 13, and stepdaughter, Princess Andem, 16. Markodean and Ishawna currently attend Gregory Park Primary School, while Thorpe goes to Waterford High School.
“The grooming of horses alone cannot provide for my family and that’s why I do the swimming also to get a little more cash in the pocket. After the bills are paid and the children’s school supplies are taken care of, sometimes I am left with nothing; it is very hard.
“I am currently taking care of three horses, plus I do swimming like three to four days a week. The kids look up to me and I have to be strong for them,” said Collins, who also has two children from previous relationships.
Despite the long hours and low pay, Collins takes pride in taking care of his equine charges and stands ready to go the extra mile for his family.
“I have to do it; I have to provide for them. If I don’t provide for them [family], then who is going to provide for them. I love them and I have to make sure that they are alright; I have to make sure that they are happy even if I have to do extra work.
“Well, what I can tell you is that it [my job] is hard work, really hard work, but I still enjoy what I am doing still as I know that I have a family to go home to and to take care of.
“The grooming of horses is a very difficult job and it takes a lot of time as we are the key factors in the conditioning and well-being of horses. Sometimes you have to spend more time with the horses than your family and it is something that you have to do to bring in the food. You want to spend more time with you family but, at the same time, you have to work to keep them healthy,” he said.
Collins said, when money is scarce and ends just won’t meet, he credits his partner Latoya Sutton for being a strong motivator and unconditional friend.
“Whenever I am away, I don’t have to worry about the kids because I know that “Mum Mum” [Latoya] is there and she takes good care of them. I know that she is working at present, but she gets support from her family and that sometimes helps in the household whenever I cannot deliver.
“She also encourages me a lot and pushes me to carry on and that’s why I am out there looking for better and to better my family as we all are one, one team,” he said.
Sutton, who lives with Collins in Gregory Park for many years, said that Collins is a real man and a great father to her children.
“I met Markie [Collins] with two children and he didn’t hesitate to accept them as his own and he takes good care of them like they are his. He is very kind and I can tell you he is a family man; he is always there for us no matter what.
“I just want to tell him happy Father’s Day and continue to be the person that he is, as we all love him,” Sutton said.
Due to his commitment to the racing industry, Collins was awarded for his hard work and services for swimming horses in 2018, a day that he will never forget.
“This [swimming horses] is not something which is easy. It tough, very tough, and you have to be patient and have the skill, it takes time and a lot of effort to swim horses. That day when I got the award, I was so happy because of the dedication I put towards the industry, I got recognition for,” Collins said.
He then shared his journey into the racing industry.
“I was born in Jones Town in Kingston. I grew up in Fletcher’s Land and then I came to Gregory Park in St Catherine where I currently live. I came to Gregory Park around 1979, and you know, Gregory Park is where Caymanas Park is, and so it was there I ended up all the time.
“From I came here, it was just Caymanas Park I knew and so it was easy for me to get into the sport as it was just walking distance from where I live. Going to the racetrack was something that I liked and I got attached to the sport so much that I decided to take up horse racing as my work to feed my family and myself. That was so many years ago, I can’t even remember, but I am good and getting by and still enjoying my time in racing,” Collins shared.
It take didn’t long for Collins to work himself into the game.
“Being so close to the track and thing, I got to like the whole idea of horse racing and stuff, but I did want to become a jockey at first and that didn’t work out for me because, as you know, the problem is catching the weight. After that, I then started to swim horses with Patrick Fong before he became a trainer and that led me to become a groom.
“Up till this day I am still swimming horses as well as grooming horses. I got my groom’s licence in 1998 and I groomed horses at the stables of trainers Richard Azan, Fitzroy Glispie as well as Gresford Smith. I also worked with Patrick Fong as well, but right now I am working with Borris McIntosh.
“My first winner was with a horse by the name of French Bill. Allen “Bongo John” Maragh was the jockey and he rode a wonderful race that day going over the five-furlong (1,000m) straight. I was working at Richard Azan’s stables at that time,” Collins ended.
