2007 ARCHIVES

 

Posted on July 23, 2007

 

Victory Junction - This One’s For The Children

 

by Karah-Leigh Hancock

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If you claim to be a NASCAR fan and do not know what Victory Junction is, then maybe you should turn your television from SPEED to Days of Our Lives because obviously you’re not a real fan.

With Kyle Petty’s Charity Ride coming to an end after riding around 2,800 miles from Main to Miami with the help of his wife and other celebrities like supermodel (and Mrs. Burney Lamar) Niki Taylor and football hero Herschel Walker, I thought looking back on the history and mission of the camp itself would be appropriate.

The camp was started by by Kyle and Patty Petty after the death of their son Adam. The camp was Adam’s vision and after he was unfortunately killed in a practice crash at New Hampshire International Speedway, his parents worked hard so that his vision would become a reality. With the help of Paul Newman (yes, that Paul Newman), Victory Junction Gang Camp was born and finally opened on June 20, 2004.

The camp is located in the Radleman, North Carolina on land that was donated by Adam’s grandfather, seven-time Cup Champion Richard Petty and his wife, Linda. Children from all over the southeast (some coming from all parts of the country) come to the camp year round. The camp’s purpose is to make the lives of children with serious illnesses and extreme chronic medical conditions by helping them have a fun time in a safe environment with medical attention on site. At the camp, the children can have fun and make friends with other children who are battling the same medical problems as themselves.

NASCAR drivers have done tremendous work and made generous donations to the camp. One of the most stand out drivers that is involved in the camp is Tony Stewart - who most would not even think of as the “charitable” kind. In fact, he’s one of the most charitable. Besides donating funds from this year’s Pay-Per-View telecast of his “Prelude To The Dream”, which totals are still being tallied from, he has donated a million dollars on two separate occasions (2006 and 2003). He has donated other amounts on several occasions and is one of the first drivers to become really involved in the charity.

Plus, the camp wouldn’t be a real NASCAR camp without NASCAR themed attractions. There’s the Michael Waltrip Operation Marathon Sportscenter, Adam’s Race Shop, Bass Pro Shops Catch, Kiss & Release Marina, Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America Water Park, Home Depot Tree House, Tony Stewart Maze, Jimmie Johnson’s Victory Lanes. An actual superdome for indoor sporting facilities began development in 2006 after a million dollar donation from drive Kurt Busch.

The camp is free to all campers and families but cost around $1500 per camper. It runs off donations from everybody which is where the purpose of this article comes in.

As a believer of what the Petty’s created with Victory Junction Gang Camp, I am taking part in Blogathon 2007 (http://www.blogathon.org) where I will stay up for 24 hours, blogging on my website (http://www.trackbunnyfilms.com). The purpose of Blogathon is for bloggers to get donations and sponsorship from readers much like people do in cancer walks and other charity events. The money which is raised will be sent to Victory Junction Gang Camp after the end of Blogathon (which starts July 28 at 9 a.m. EST), sponsors will be sent an email with a link of where they can go send the money which means you don’t have to send in your payment information right now but you sign up and tell how much you’re sponsoring me for.

You can click here (http://www.blogathon.org/pledge.php?blogid=359) to sponsor me in Blogathon 2007 which helps Victory Junction and all the adorable children that the camp makes happy throughout the year.

 


You can contact Karah-Leigh at karah@speedwaymedia.com


 

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