The story of Cody Dorman and Cody’s Wish came full circle – literally – Saturday morning at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
More than 500 people gathered for the unveiling of a monument of Cody’s Wish that is at the center of a circular plaza that also includes granite stones displaying images of Cody and Cody’s Wish, the story of the bond between boy and horse, highlights of the 2023 Horse of the Year’s accomplishments and a list of major donors.
Artist Jocelyn Russell created the life-size statue of Cody’s Wish, a project she has been working on for almost two years.
“If you build it they will come,” said Kelly Dorman, Cody’s father, looking out at the huge crowd that came to the Horse Park seven years to the day after Cody first met the horse that would be named for him and become his best friend. There were people from all walks of Cody’s life: horse racing, fishing, motorcycles, and car clubs, along with a multitude of friends and family.
“This is really incredible,” Dorman said. “I look throughout this crowd and I see friends I’ve had all my life, my family, people I’ve worked with in the past, work with now. Through all the friends that we’ve had, we have literally felt the hand of support on our back from the day Cody was born.”
As Russell’s statue of Secretariat was making the racetrack rounds in 2023, she met the Dormans at Saratoga, the day before Cody’s Wish ran in the Whitney. Like so many, she was immediately touched by the story of the inexplicable yet undeniable bond between Cody and the horse.
When Cody died three months later, the day after Cody’s Wish capped his racing career with a second straight win in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, Russell called friend Robin Hutton, whose book on famous war horse Sergeant Reckless was the basis for another Russell masterpiece. Her message was clear: We have to do something.
After getting the go-ahead from Godolphin, Russell came to Jonabell Farm December 18, 2023, on what would have been Cody’s 18th birthday. She took detailed measurements of Cody’s Wish, the first steps in a process that culminated Saturday.
“When we lost Cody something struck me and I told Robin we have to do something monumental for this,” Russell said. “The whole story is so compelling. Every day I pinch myself we’re on such an amazing ride. I was very honored to be the artist working on this project.”
Russell’s first inclination was to include Cody in the monument, sitting in his wheelchair with Cody’s Wish’s head lowered to his level. But after giving it more thought, she opted to leave that space open, instead placing a stone with an image of that interaction a few feet away, creating a scenario where the horse appears to be gazing at that image the way he looked at Cody.
“We wanted to offer Cody’s space to others, allowing them to share his bond with Cody’s Wish,” Russell said.
In a deeply emotional scene Saturday, the first person to enter that space after the formal unveiling was Carson Jost, a 33-year-old from Washington state who suffers from the same genetic condition, Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, that plagued Cody. Carson also had a Grade 1 horse named for him, Carson’s Run, and when he ran at Santa Anita Park in the 2023 Breeders’ Cup, Carson and Cody and their families met on the backstretch.
“This lasting tribute is a beautiful illustration of the power of the bond between humans and horses,” said Lee Carter, executive director of the Kentucky Horse Park, who noted Cody’s Wish is the only statue of a living horse among the 40 located on the grounds.
The story of Cody and Cody’s Wish was born at Gainsborough Farm when Danny Mulvihill introduced the 5-month-old son of Dance Card to Cody, who was there as a Make-A-Wish ambassador. Their connection was instant, prompting Godolphin – at the suggestion of Mary Bourne – to name the horse after Cody. The rest is history.
“Who knew that day would set us on a trajectory like it has,” Mulvihill said Saturday. “When the two Codys met, time would stand still and it would take your breath away. This (monument) will do the same thing.”
Indeed it will.
