NASCAR pit crews join together to raise awareness of childhood hunger
CONCORD, N.C. — If you flip on FOX Sports 1 to watch Saturday afternoon’s Xfinity Series race, your eyes might be drawn to a brightly colored No. 62 car.
A charity called Pit Stops for Hope is being featured on Brendan Gaughan’s Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet this weekend to raise awareness of the organization’s cause: feeding hungry children and promoting education by aiding underfunded classrooms.
Pit Stops For Hope is well known in the garage, but the third-year organization is still struggling to gain the same level of attention other NASCAR charities receive. Gaughan’s paint scheme, a natural tie-in because RCR pit crew members founded the organization, should help raise more awareness.
Ray Wright, a former tire carrier who is now a pit crew coach at RCR, came up with the idea for Pit Stops for Hope after attending a Bible study in 2013. He was frustrated by the amount of talk and lack of action, and he had recently read a story about the prevalence of childhood hunger in North Carolina.
“I was like, ‘Hey man, this is perfect,’” Wright said. “We’ve got this huge stage in NASCAR. We’ve got hungry kids in North Carolina. This is what Bible study should be instead of just talking. We can actually help these people who really need help.”
So Wright, then a crew member for Paul Menard’s car, joined with other RCR crewmen to start raising money on race days.
Each Sunday at Menard’s pit stall, crew members set up a small stand to sell race-used crew items and experiences to fans who strolled by with pre-race pit passes.
Fans can purchase lug nuts, pit crew gloves, crew shirts and even the chance to get a picture atop Menard’s pit box. The proceeds go toward the charity’s mission, but some fans who haven’t heard of it seem skeptical.
“The difficulty is people think it’s not legit,” Wright said. “They’ll walk by and make comments like, ‘Man, you guys are going to have a good time after the race with this money.’ That’s like a big hit, you know? We really care about this stuff.”
Pit Stops for Hope recently surpassed $100,000 in donations to the Second Harvest Food Bank and has raised $15,000 for teachers to better their classrooms. It’s also done things like buy a refrigerator for a local Salvation Army and sent $2,000 to a classroom in Flint, Mich.
And it's not just RCR crews who have raised the money. Other crewmen stop by the Menard pit to drop off race-used items after races and Team Penske pit crew coach Trent Cherry's charity golf tournament made Pit Stops for Hope its primary cause last year.
Childhood hunger and education might seem like two different objectives, Wright said, but they’re tied together. Hungry children don’t learn as well at school, and a lack of resources in the classroom only further sets them down a road to poverty.
Wright and other members of the organization will participate in a fast on Saturday to raise more awareness for what some kids are going through.
“These guys really want to make a difference in the lives of children who are facing poverty and also support teachers,” Motor Racing Outreach pastor Nick Terry said. “They all volunteer their time and sacrifice a lot of things to be able to provide for those in need. They’re working really hard.”
Terry is among the organization’s biggest advocates. He’s training for an Ironman triathlon in October and is dedicating his race to Pit Stops for Hope (the former jackman is trying to raise money for each mile he swims, bikes and runs). On the days when he isn’t motivated to train, Terry said, he thinks of the kids who could benefit from funds raised for Pit Stops for Hope.
“There are children who live in poverty right here in our community and close to our surroundings,” he said. “By nature, we can easily go through life and just miss the people around us in need who are maybe just miles away.”