REVVIN’ UP SPIRITS: IndyCar drivers bring joy to Children’s Hospital patients
The Racing For Kids organization has raised over $7 million since founded in 1989.
Known for their expertise of getting from point A to point B the fastest, NTT IndyCar Series drivers Rinus Veekay and Conor Daly took their sweet time Thursday as they visited with patients at Children’s Hospital of Michigan.
In Detroit for this weekend’s Detroit Grand Prix, Veekay and Daly — accompanied by the race’s jaw-dropping show car — were participating in the the hospital’s Racing For Kids program, which was founded in 1989 by pediatric cardiologist William Pinsky, MD.
Racing For Kids is a Detroit-based national charity that uses the popularity of motorsports to focus public awareness and funding on the health-care needs of children.
Giving back around the globe
Professional motorsports drivers have visited more than 40,000 children in more than 750 children’s hospitals in the United States, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Japan and Australia.
The organization has raised more than $7 million for the hospitals and additional children’s health institutions.
Veekay and Daly, who drive for Ed Carpenter Racing, handed out Racing For Kids caps and WikkiStix, signed autographs, posed for photos and talked about their racing careers.
Making patients’ day
A CHM Child Life Specialist explained how significant visits like this are for young patients.
Major sponsors of Racing For Kids include TranSystems, Bridgestone Firestone Trust Fund, Douglas E. Fregin, the Cotton family, and Benson Ford, Jr.
For more information, visit the nonprofit’s website here.
Thanks to Communications Professional Tammy Battaglia for providing photos and content to SocialHouseNews.com for this article.
