NASCAR Babies Galore

Looks like there is a new race in NASCAR. No, I am not talking about on the racetrack, but it seems to be a race to the delivery room.

            The NASCAR baby boom started off in June 2007 with Jeff Gordon and his wife, Ingrid Vandeboush, welcoming their first child, daughter Ella Sofia, in June 2007. Nationwide Series driver, Jason Leffler and his wife, Alison welcomed their son, Charlie Dean, almost two months later on August 16th.

Sam and Crystal Hornish continued the baby boom in February the following year with the arrival of their first daughter, Addison Faith. Casey Mears followed welcoming his bundle of joy, Samantha Mae, that October with wife Trisha.

After winning the Daytona 500 in 2009, Matt Kenseth announced that his wife, Katie, was pregnant with the couple’s first child and due in July. Kaylin Nicola joined the Kenseth clan on July 6^th, 2009. The McDowells, Michael and Jami, welcomed their “McNugget”, Trace Christopher, on February 25^th.

2010 was by far the busiest year for the stork, with two NASCAR reporters and ten drivers announcing new additions to their families. ESPN reporter, Shannon Spake kicked of the baby boom with twice the joy. Twin boys, Brady and Liam, arrived four days into the year. Camping World Truck Series driver, Johnny Sauter and wife Cortney welcomed their first child, son Penn Joseph, ten days later. Athena Barber made Robby Gordon a daddy on January 28th when she gave birth to a son, Garrett Robert. Wyatt Herman Fritz Sadler arrived just hours after dad, Elliott, finished the Daytona 500.  First-time fathers, Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson both added daughters to their families. Edwards welcomed Anne Katherine in February and Johnson’s little Genevieve “Evie” Thursday, May 26, 2011Marie entered the world in July. Juan Pablo Montoya became a third-time father when his daughter, Manuela, joined siblings Sebastian and Paulina in July as well. Ella Sofia became got the title of “Big Sister” when Jeff and Ingrid welcomed Leo Benjamin into their family on August 9^th, 2010.  Brendan and Tatum Gaughan welcomed their little “Tater Tot”, Michael James on October 30^th. Ryan Newman and 2010 Daytona 500 winner, Jamie McMurray both welcomed their first children into their families in November. Brooklyn Sage Newman was born November 18^th and Carter Scott McMurray made Thanksgiving extra special for his family when he arrived that day. Speed reporter, Wendy Venturini gave birth to her first child, Caleb James three days before Christmas. However, it was Eliza Jo Hornish who would end the baby boom of 2010 when she joined parents, Sam and Crystal and big sister Addison, on December 28^th.

The baby boom is not over yet though. Matt and Katie Kenseth welcomed their second delivery surprise on February 22, 2011. Grace Katherine arrived two days after the Daytona 500. Kenseth is not the only Roush/Fenway driver expanding his family in 2011. Carl Edwards became a second-time father in May when wife, Kate, gave birth to their son Michael, and Greg and Nicole Biffle are expecting their first child, a daughter, on July 10^th. The Sauters also added to their family two days after Johnny won a Camping World Truck Series race. Paige Gertrude made her appearance into the world on April 6^th.   There are also two more impending arrivals yet this year. Scott and Amanda Speed are expecting a daughter in September and Elliott Sadler announced Wyatt will be a big brother sometime in November. Casey Mears and wife Trisha are the latest to add to the NASCAR baby boom with a new son. Hayden Mears was born on May 24^th.

I doubt this baby boom is over yet. More drivers will definitely add additions to their families. Who knows maybe the Busch brothers will join in the fun sometime in the near future. Or maybe there is a sibling in the future for Charlie Leffler or Emilia Reutimann. Who knows maybe even five-time and his wife, Chani, will give Evie a sibling. After all, there is not anything more heartwarming to a fan, than to see their favorite driver celebrating in Victory with their children.

More Than a NASCAR Driver

A hero may mean different things to different people. Some people may believe a hero needs to be someone who possesses superpowers or who saves the world such as Superman. Others may believe a hero is someone who does something for someone else and will put themselves before anything else such as a parent or a friend would do. Some people might even believe that a hero is someone who teaches a lesson like a teacher does in a classroom. Some individuals may argue that a hero had to do something important such as save someone’s life like a firefighter, though that may not always be the case. Jeff Gordon, a four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, may have never saved someone’s life personally, but he is saving thousands of lives every day through his charities and sponsorships.

NASCAR’s “Wonder Boy”, a nickname Gordon was given by the late Dale Earnhardt his rookie season, started his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career back in 1993. He has made an appearance in Victory Lane a total of eighty-three times in those eighteen seasons. Aside from racing, however, Gordon is very involved with numerous charities and organizations. The Vallejo, California, native is very involved with finding cures for different types of cancer, especially pediatric cancer. He has seen firsthand from his own personally experiences what cancer can do to an individual and the loved ones around them. His car owner, Rick Hendrick, and the son of his former crew chief, Ray Evernham, both were diagnosed with Leukemia (both have been in remission now for a number of years).  After they became parents in June 2007, Gordon and his model wife, Ingrid Vandeboush, have also became major contributors to a campaign helping to prevent and educate parents on the effects of Pertussis or whooping cough. In addition, in 2010, Gordon signed a multi-year sponsorship deal for a number of races with an AARP organization starting for the 2011 NASCAR season to help provide meals for senior citizens who cannot afford to buy meals for themselves (Newton 1).

Jeff Gordon wanted to start a foundation in 1992 when Ray Evernham’s son, Ray J, was diagnosed with Leukemia at the age of one year. Gordon founded the Jeff Gordon Foundation in 1999. His goal was, and still is, to provide treatment for children with pediatric cancer whose parents cannot afford to pay.  The foundation’s mission statement reads:

“The mission of the Jeff Gordon Foundation is to support children battling cancer by funding programs that improve patients’ quality of life, treatment programs that increase survivorship and pediatric medical research dedicated to finding a cure (Jeff 1).”

In 2011, the foundation exceeded one million dollars in donations for finding cures for pediatric cancers (Children’s 1). He opened the Jeff Gordon’s Children Hospital, located in Concord, North Carolina in 2007. In order to raise money for the foundation, Gordon has a yearly raffle where he will give away a brand new Corvette. Tickets for this raffle are one hundred dollars.  Gordon and his foundation also are involved with the Make-A-Wish Foundation which tries to provide children with a chance to have one of their wishes come true. He is one of only four celebrities to grant over two hundred wishes. He has also recently been honored by the Make-A-Wish Foundation as the number one celebrity wish granter in the history of the organization (About1). Sometimes Gordon will actually bring a child to the racetrack to spend an entire weekend with him and his team. The Jeff Gordon Foundation also works with the National Marrow Donor Program, or NMDP, and the National Marrow Foundation. These programs help to find a bone marrow or blood cord donor match for people who need one. Gordon recently went to Capitol Hill to make sure these programs continue to receive support.

            The father of two and his wife have teamed up with the March of Dimes and their “Sounds of Pertussis” campaign. This campaign urges new parents to get the Pertussis booster shot to prevent their newborn infants from contracting whooping cough. Whooping cough, also known as Pertussis, is a bacterial disease caused by the Bordetella Pertussis bacteria that can be passed to an infant from an adult (Racing 1). Though it is not usually thought to be fatal to adults, this contagious disease can cause a baby to be admitted to the hospital or even be deadly to the baby as a result. Gordon was not aware of the affects of whooping cough when his daughter, Ella, was born three years ago. He has said many times that he was shocked that he could have given this to her. He got his Pertussis vaccination before his son, Leo, arrived last August.  His wife, Ingrid, got her vaccination shortly after she had given birth to Leo as well. Both Gordon and Vandeboush urge parents and anyone else who may come in contact with infants, to get the booster to keep their children safe and healthy. Gordon even has a playlist people may download on iTunes. Five percent of each song purchased will go toward the “Sounds of Pertussis” campaign (Whooping 1).

            Jeff Gordon signed a sponsorship deal at the end of the 2010 NASCAR season with the American Association of Retired Persons or AARP and the Drive to End Hunger. The AARP’s goal is to help provide food, housing, income and isolation to senior citizens. The programs are paid for by contributions that are tax-deductible, grants and the AARP (Drive 1). They will be the primary sponsor for twenty-two races a season for the next three years. The Drive to End Hunger’s goal is to supply senior citizens fifty years ond over with meals every day. Every dollar spent can feed seven senior citizens a day. After Gordon’s win in Phoenix in back March, the Drive to End Hunger donated $10,000 to a local food bank located there. That $10,000 would feed 70,000 hungry seniors (Drive 1).

            Jeff Gordon tries to help people in every way he can. He races every week and when he is in the car, he is only focused on the task at hand. When he is not at the track racing, he is spending time with his family and visiting the children at the Jeff Gordon’s Children Hospital. Gordon even takes time to do contests on his Twitter and Facebook accounts so that his fans know how much he appreciates them. He has helped many people to have their dreams come true.