Written by:
Wendy Venturini
SPEED’s Wendy Venturini with Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon on this week’s edition of 'Real Deal'...
Announcer: "...Jeff Gordon pops the champagne, wins for the first time at Texas Motor Speedway..."
Wendy Venturini: "It is hard to believe that his one win came this spring here at Texas and now he is starting off with a great start this weekend with a pole ... but the real victory and the real trophy for Jeff Gordon aren’t necessarily in victory lane. It’s his work off the track with the Jeff Gordon Foundation. Now they are celebrating 10 years in the making of the Jeff Gordon Foundation. They have done some wonderful things in our community and outside the racing community. For more on that, we head to the Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, to catch up with Jeff Gordon for this week’s 'Real Deal'..."
Wendy Venturini: "While Jeff Gordon might be one of the fiercest competitors on the track, for the past ten years the Jeff Gordon Foundation has been doing its part off the track to better the lives of children who battle chronic illness and disease."
Jeff Gordon: "I’m very proud and honored that we’ve had 10 great years, and have done so much. We’ve raised a lot of money through a lot of fun events, but it is really all about what we’re doing for the organizations that really touch these children and the families. I never expected when I started the foundation to be able to accomplish what we have and I feel like we have so much more ahead of us to do -- and that is what I am so excited about, the future."
Wendy Venturini: "And the future is who Jeff touches the most. On one of his many visits to Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis our RaceDay cameras were able to capture some of the magic."
Jeff Gordon: "The toughest and best part of my day is meeting the kids - the children and it is just such an inspiration. To see what the children are going through here and the parents. Now being a parent, it is really tough to see and to watch but to see the success stories, to see them walk away, that’s what it’s all about. Unfortunately I met a little boy today that the success story hasn't worked out. And it is so hard to watch them go through that and to have a parent tell you that they are waiting for the end. And that is not something that sits well with anybody but I know the doctors and staff don't take that lightly, they are challenged by that and they are going to do everything that they can to make sure that doesn't happen again. You do what you can to try to be compassionate towards you know, whether it be them leaving the hospital and going to live (a) normal life in the time that they have here which is never going to be easy or whether their last days are going to be spent at the hospital. It's what I can do to maybe take their mind off of things a little bit. It inspires me to want to do more and want to be a part of it and I wish I could do more days like this."
Wendy Venturini: "While the hectic schedule of NASCAR takes up much of Jeff's time, giving back always puts things into perspective, especially since Jeff became a father himself."
Jeff Gordon: "It makes me appreciate every moment that I get to spent with Ella, because you just never really do know. I mean she’s bouncing all over the place, and it is just the greatest thing in the world -- but you have to keep it in check and balance it out. I want to do all I can to encourage and support and maybe make their day go a little bit better."
Wendy Venturini: "And as Jeff heads toward the final chapters of his tremendous racing career, his legacy off the track will carry on for many more years with his Foundation."
Jeff Gordon: "We have the most incredible community of giving back, and that’s exciting, and it has encouraged me to want to give back, and that’s what is going to take me into the future of racing... is what I’ve been able to do. The people and the children I have been able to meet and touch and hopefully change some lives through the Foundation. That’s what I’m excited about, of being able to see that grow and those lives that we’ve been able to change."
Wendy Venturini: "And that trip to Riley Children’s Hospital was special for all of us involved, even for Jeff Gordon being able to be there and see how it all works out. Parent or not - you really do take an appreciation for what those children go through. Whether it is the Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis. Indiana, he also has the Jeff Gordon Children Hospital and Northeast Medical Center in Concord, North Carolina, Jeff Gordon has definitely done a lot with his success in NASCAR and carrying it over to the community. The Jeff Gordon Foundation, it is hard to believe it has been 10 years. They raised two and a half million dollars this year alone that they have pledged and donated for this season. It is very neat to see how these drivers have a successful career and they turn around and give it back to our community..."
www.JeffGordonFoundation.org • RileyChildrensHospital.com
SOURCE: SPEED/Edited by Michael Pomeroy and Steve Keller.
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