Stewart’s Laps to Help Out UPDATE 2: Tony Stewart will be pulling double duty again by running in both the Coca-Cola 600 and the Indianapolis 500 next Sunday(May 27th) and part of a charity fund-raising effort by running in both events. For every lap that Stewart completes in both races, Home Depot, Target-Ganassi Racing and Stewart will each donate $100 ($300 a lap total x 600 laps could be $180,000 – sorry miscalculated before) to the Victory Junction Camp that is currently being started by Kyle Petty. “When we started the idea of doing the double duty again, we wanted to do something special. So many people have helped us to do this whole thing. We wanted to give something back. This gives us an added bonus to do well, not that we need it. We need to stay on the lead lap all day. To do something positive is my honor to be a part of it.” Kyle Petty was on hand and said how much this meant to have the exposure for the camp that should open in the summer of 2004. “There are not words in my heart to thank Tony and everyone personally for what this means,” said Petty. “It’s a long way to get this camp up and running. We need to get the awareness out there. For Tony to do this and get the exposure on the networks is huge for the Victory Junction Camp. It will cost around 25 to 30 million dollars for the project. We were filming a Coke commercial here at the speedway a couple of weeks ago, and Tony had the idea to do this. We were very excited when we put everything together. We want to make this camp a NASCAR thing, not a Petty thing, and this awareness certainly will help. To help make these dreams come true means more than you could ever know.(LMS Notes)(5-19-2001) UPDATE: In Stewart’s second attempt at this racing marathon, he has pledged to donate $100 to charity for every lap he completes. The Home Depot, Joe Gibbs Racing and Target Chip Ganassi Racing are each supporting Stewart’s offer by matching the driver’s tally. With 600 total laps equaling a possible combined donation of $240,000. The benefactor, the Victory Junction Gang Camp, is a planned extension of the original Hole In The Wall Gang Camp founded for kids by Paul Newman. Kyle Petty, driver of the #45 Sprint Dodge and wife Pattie, who created the annual Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America in 1995, plan to build the Victory Junction Gang Camp in Randleman, NC, in honor of their late son, Adam. Like the Hole In The Wall Gang Camp and its six other sister organizations, the Victory Junction Gang Camp will be a permanent, year-round center that will accommodate children with chronic and life-threatening diseases at no cost to the children or their families. “I’m proud to be a part of this great cause,” said Stewart. “I believe in what Kyle and Pattie are doing, and hope the money we raise in one day helps them build their dream.” Groundbreaking for the camp is slated for the latter half of 2001 with construction complete in the summer of 2004. The camp will be comprised of 36 buildings including a medical center, camper cabins, dining hall, pool, arts & crafts, stables, boathouse, gym and theater.(Motorsports Decisions PR)(5-21-2001) PLUS on a side note, Joe Gibbs Racing is holding a blood drive on May 29th (tuesday), see my Racing Charities page for the details(5-23-2001) (5-22-2001)
