NASCAR athletes giving back to the community is something not new, and one of the biggest examples of this is the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation. In an episode of Rubbin is Racing, the 4X Cup Series champion spilled the reason behind him starting the charitable foundation.
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When Jeff Gordon came into the sport, he was a young man who just wanted to win races. However, the more he stayed in the sport, the more he was impressed by the community service that stalwarts like Richard Petty, Bill Elliott, and Dale Earnhardt carried out during their racing days.
“I wanted to live up to Richard Petty and Bill Elliott and Dale Earnhardt and these guys,” said Gordon. “What I admired about them was that they weren’t just focused on racing. They were doing things for their community or doing things for others.”
That is why the Hendrick Motorsports legend started his foundation in 1999, which focuses on treating pediatric cancer. However, there was another incident that triggered Gordon to set up his foundation.
Gordon’s then-crew chief Ray Evernham’s infant son was diagnosed with leukemia back in 1992. It is then that the 2019 Hall of Fame inductee felt the urgency of giving back to the community. “…that’s where we started focusing on pediatric cancer,” he admitted.
What does the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation do?
Today, cancer is the number one reason behind deaths by disease in children. According to a study, 43 children are diagnosed with some form of cancer each day, which takes away their chance at living a healthy and fruitful life.
Unfortunately, a meager 4% of the National Cancer Institute’s funds are kept aside for children’s cancer research.
Hence, the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation relies on personal donations to fund the research performed by leading oncologists from across the country, regardless of their hospital affiliation or location.
Back in November, the foundation had also held a sweepstake called Corvette For A Cure, which had Gordon’s brand new Chevrolet Corvette as the takeaway prize.
