The IRL Good News

There are just too many great stories in the IRL to just let them slip away.
I try to capture some of these positive acts of charity here.

IRL Helps Raise Money for Breast Cancer Awareness
Saturday Oct 11, 2003 - Indy Racing League team members and employees raised $2,615 during Lee® National Denim Day Oct. 10 during practice and MBNA Qualifying for the Chevy 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.
IRL officials and team members wore denim and a pink ribbon as part of their uniforms in exchange for a $5 donation to the Susan G. Komen Foundation to show support for the fight against breast cancer.
In its eighth year, Lee National Denim Day® is the world’s largest single-day fundraiser for breast cancer research, education, screening and treatment programs.
Every year on one Friday in October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Lee® Jeans invites businesses and organizations like the Indy Racing League to participate in Lee National Denim Day by allowing employees to wear denim in exchange for the donation.
IndyCarTM Series driver Sarah Fisher was part of the fundraising efforts and wore jeans between her practice sessions for Sunday’s season finale.
“On behalf of the Indy Racing League, all the teams, media and Speedway personnel that contributed, we are pleased to make this donation to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation,” Fisher said. “I’m grateful for the high level of participation and support from the paddock area.
“While it’s a small role in the entire campaign of 23,000 companies doing this today, it’s an important step to raise awareness within our working environment. It’s great that we could do this during what is otherwise an intense weekend leading up to the Chevy 500 race.”
In seven years, Lee National Denim Day has raised more than $36 million for the Susan G. Komen Foundation, an international, not-for-profit organization dedicated to putting an end to breast cancer. The goal this year is to raise $6.5 million in one day. Every dollar raised goes directly to the Susan G. Komen Foundation to support breast cancer research, education, screening and treatment programs.

Kelley Racing Helps PitCrewForADay Charity
(Feb 6, 2003) - PitCrewForADay is an Arizona based company that was formed to provide fund raising programs for a variety of non-profit organizations around the country and Kelley Racing will be the first IndyCar team to partner in their fund raising efforts for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
A raffle will be held (5000 raffle tickets at $100 each) and the winner will receive round trip air fare for two to the Copper World Indy 200 on March 23rd in Phoenix, Arizona. Included is ground transportation, two all access pit passes, two grandstand tickets, hotel accommodations with Kelley Racing, an exact replica of a drivers helmet autographed by the driver, his crew and Tom Kelley as well as the option of working with the crew throughout the event weekend. There will be several raffles throughout the year. This first one will be for Al Unser, Jr's team.
To get more information or to enter to win the “Experience of a Lifetime” you can go to their website at www.PitCrewForADay.com or call 1-866-573-RACE (7223).

INDIANAPOLIS, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2003 -- 1998 Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever Jr. and Indy Racing League Senior Technical Director Phil Casey presented a $17,500 contribution to The Brian's Wish Fund and The ALS Association of Indiana on Jan. 23, part of the record $40,000 raised by the 12th annual Phil Casey Indy Racing Charity Golf Tournament in September 2002.
Besides the $17,500 contribution to Brian's Wish and The ALS Association, another $17,500 was donated to the Pediatric Diabetes Center at Valley Children's Hospital in Fresno, Calif., in honor of Casey's granddaughter, Jennifer, who received successful treatment at the hospital. Another $5,000 was donated to the Ronald McDonald House in Fresno.
The Brian's Wish Fund was created in memory of Brian Hall, an avid race fan and courageous ALS patient. Hall was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis -- ALS, also commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease -- in 1997 and passed away on Indianapolis 500 Carburetion Day, May 23, 2002. The Brian's Wish Fund and members of Hall's family chose to donate the proceeds to The ALS Association of Indiana.
"The Indiana chapter of The ALS Association is deeply touched by the generosity and thoughtfulness of Phil Casey, Eddie Cheever and Brian Hall's family," said Joe Bill Wiley, board chairman of The ALS Association of Indiana. "These funds will go a long way in supporting our efforts to help Indiana ALS patients and families in the coming year.
Established in 1997, the mission of The ALS Association of Indiana is to increase public awareness of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and to enhance the lives of ALS patients through providing direct services to patients, families and caregivers, while supporting national research efforts to find a cure.
All of the funds were raised at the 2002 golf tournament staged by Casey, which took place Sept. 16 at the Tour 18 course in Fort Worth, Texas. Co-sponsors of the tournament included Spot-On Cable, Frank Weiss Machines, Infiniti and William D. Ward Wachovia Securities.
Indy Racing League drivers and personalities who participated in the tournament included two-time defending IRL IndyCar Series champion Sam Hornish Jr., 2002 IRL Infiniti Pro Series champion A.J. Foyt IV, Cheever, 2000 IRL IndyCar Series champion and 1996 Indianapolis 500 winner Buddy Lazier, two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr., IndyCar Series standout Robbie Buhl, IRL President and CEO Tony George, IRL Senior Vice President of Racing Operations Brian Barnhart, four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Rick Mears and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Johnny Rutherford.
The 13th annual tournament is scheduled for Oct. 13, 2003 -- the day after the season-ending Chevy 500 at Texas Motor Speedway -- at Tour 18.

INDIANAPOLIS, IN ? SEPTEMBER 15, 2002 ? Tom Kelley, owner of Indianapolis based Kelley Racing and Al Unser, Jr., driver of the #7 Kelley Racing Corteco/Bryant car, today presented a check in the amount of $27,466 to Anthony Edwards, from the tv show ?ER?, and the national spokesman for ?CURE AUTISM NOW?. The presentation was made at Texas Motor Speedway just prior to the start of the Chevy 500, the final event of the 2002 Indy Racing League season.
In May 2002 White Castle teamed with Kelley Racing and Al Unser, Jr. in the Need for Speed promotion for the benefit of ?CURE AUTISM NOW?.
Cure Autism Now (CAN) is a charitable non-profit Hollywood-based foundation dedicated solely to finding an effective biological treatment, prevention and cure for autism and related disorders. It is a neurological disease and is not rare. It is the third most common developmental disability following mental retardation and cerebral palsy and affects one in every 250 to 500 births. It is even more common than multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis or childhood cancer.
For more information log on to www.cureautismnow.org

April 19, 2002 - Sam Hornish Jr. Behind Wheel of Young Life Clubs Fundraiser: Young Life of Indianapolis announced recently that Sam Hornish, Jr., defending Indy Racing League champion and driver of the No. 4 Pennzoil Panther Racing Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone, will raise funds for the not-for-profit organization as he competes in the 86th Indianapolis 500-Mile Race on May 26.
Young Life has been an outreach ministry for youth since it was founded in 1940.
With every lap that Hornish completes, Young Life kids will gain in pledges allowing kids to attend camps this summer.
For information on how to participate in Hornish's Young Life fundraiser, call (317) 923-1319. Young Life is on the Internet at www.younglife.org.

Feb 22, 2002 Racers help raise money for Brian's Wish: A total of $2,000 was raised for the Brian's Wish organization during a charity karting event Feb. 19 at RACERS in Indianapolis.
Among the drivers participating in the event were 1996-97 Indy Racing League champion Tony Stewart, Indy Racing veterans Tyce Carlson and Scott Harrington and 2001 Pennzoil World of Outlaws champion Danny Lasoski.
Stewart, who raced under the incognito nickname "Smoke Johnson", matched the $1,000 raised during the event to increase the total to $2,000.
The Brian's Wish organization was created to increase the awareness of ALS, known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The organization was named after an avid Indy Racing fan who suffers from ALS and is receiving care at St. Vincent's Hospice in Indianapolis.

(Dec 10, 2001) - Panther Racing will play host to its fifth annual Christmas party for inner-city children Dec. 15 at its southwest Indianapolis shop. Team co-owner Jim Harbaugh, who organized the Harbaugh-Hill Foundation while playing quarterback for the NFL Indianapolis Colts, created the event.
"It means a lot (to me)," Panther co-owner John Barnes said. "I grew up in Indianapolis. Racing has been my whole life. I?m able to look back at myself 30 or 40 years ago."
The children can see Panther?s championship fleet of cars up close, and meet driver Sam Hornish Jr. and all of the team members. Veteran Indy Racing team owner Jonathan Byrd provides lunch, and then the children are given gift bags provided by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and team sponsors.

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