Ten years ago this coming Sunday marks a solemn date in U.S. Military Service history. On June 25, 1996, the Khobar Towers Housing Complex in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia was bombed by extremists, ending the lives of 19 servicemen. To mark the occasion, the #21 Little Debbie Ford Fusion, driven by Ken Schrader, will carry a special decal honoring the men on the lower rear quarter panels and B-Post location during the race weekend at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California. The idea to run the memorial decals was presented to the Wood Brothers/JTG Race Team by George Beekman, who lost his stepson, Joshua E. Woody, in the tragedy. The Wood Brothers appealed to the U.S. Air Force as an associate sponsor on the car to donate the necessary space on the race car. Air Force Captain Jonathan Ness assisted in the process. “We were genuinely moved by the appeal from Mr. [George] Beekman, and are happy to represent those servicemen killed in the line of duty that day on this solemn anniversary of the tragedy,” he stated. The Air Force will have b-post sized decals to hand out to all of the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup teams, as well. George Beekman designed the memorial decal that will adorn the race car. In addition, the decal will be featured in two separate memorial services this weekend. The first, at Eglin Air Force Base in Fort Walton Beach, Florida is scheduled for Friday, June 23rd. Twelve of the nineteen servicemen killed in the blast were from Eglin AFB. The second memorial, to be held Sunday at noon, will be a service at Arlington National Cemetery in which the logo will adorn the centerpiece of the wreath laid in remembrance of the fallen heroes.(Woodbrothersracing.com)(6-21-2006)
