INDIANAPOLIS — At least two charitable programs enjoyed valuable exposure on race cars competing in Sunday’s TireRack.com “Battle on the Bricks” IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
One, called the IMSA Resilient Racers program, was created to raise awareness and funds to fight childhood cancer and other serious illnesses through two long-time IMSA charities: the Austin Hatcher Foundation and Camp Boggy Creek.
The second was organized by Houston-based Winward Racing to support the Heaven’s 27 Fund. This program supports the memories of the 27 girls at Camp Mystic in Kerr County, Texas who were lost in the devastating Guadalupe River flash floods over the Fourth of July holiday. At least 138 people, including more than 35 children, were killed in the tragedy.
Under the Resilient Racers program, participating teams are honoring a child from either the Austin Hatcher Foundation or Camp Boggy Creek by placing the child’s first name and last initial above both doors of their race cars to show encouragement and support. Approximately 50 children were honored in this way Sunday. Some of the pairings were based on the child’s favorite things such as color, number, type of car, or hometown connection.
The teams are also highlighting the children on their social and digital channels. Some hosted the child at IMS, added them to their hero cards, shared video messages during the race, and provided them with team gear and memorabilia.
Donations to the Resilient Racers program can be made through the end of September by going to hatcherfoundation.org/resilient-racers. All proceeds will be shared equally between the Austin Hatcher Foundation and Camp Boggy Creek. Fans can also donate in support of their favorite team by including the team’s name in the “Donor Note” section of the online donation page.
One such child who was honored in this way on Sunday was Maria B., who is affiliated with Camp Boggy Creek. She was diagnosed with severe osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease) in 2012, and is still being treated for it. She has endured over 50 fractures and 23 surgeries.
“Maria B.” was added to the list of drivers on the door of the TDS Racing Oreca LMP2 07 No. 11 driven by Steven Thomas, Mikkel Jensen, and Hunter McElrea in Sunday’s race.
Maria drew a picture of a colorful tire which was also included in artwork on the right-front Michelin tire on the car. Alexis Guerin was the TDS Racing crew member who recreated her artwork, as well as other drawings, on the tire with Sharpies.
Another example was the name “Carson B.” on the Lone Star Racing No. 80 GTD Mercedes-AMG GT3 sponsored by ACS Manufacturing and driven by Lin Hodenius, Wyatt Brichacek, and Scott Andrews. The team also included Carson on its hero card for Sunday’s race, and put out this social media post: “Today we race with and for the Resilient Racers program honoring brave kids from the Austin Hatcher Foundation and Camp Boggy Creek and their fights against pediatric cancer and other serious illnesses. Our RR Hero is Carson B., who has his name on the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 along with our other stars! This one’s for you Carson B., and look for us in victory lane in just under six hours!”
The Heaven’s 27 Fund was created by the parents of the 27 girls who were lost at Camp Mystic. Each family has either established a fund or designated a specific non-profit organization the public may contribute to in the girls’ memories. All funds raised by the Heaven’s 27 Fund are being distributed equally to each girl’s fund. The individual families will then use their portion for things such as providing scholarships, funding youth programs, supporting vulnerable groups, and other ways to spread joy and hope in their children’s names.
Donations can be mailed to Heaven’s 27 Fund, c/o San Antonio Area Foundation, 155 Concord Plaza Dr., Suite 301, San Antonio, TX 78216, or made online at https://saafdn.org/heavens-27-fund/.
As a Texas-based team, Winward Racing wanted to help. The reigning GT Daytona championship team included the names of all 27 children on the side of its Techemet/First Horizon/Ravenol/Crain Group Mercedes-AMG GT3 No. 57 in Sunday’s race to promote donations to the fund.
“The Heaven’s 27 livery is a tribute to their memory, a reminder of their light, and a call to spread their legacy of love and generosity,” said a post on the team’s Instagram page. “Together, we race for them.”
“The 27 girls lost lived in the same neighborhood and went to the same school,” said Russell Ward, team principal and one of it drivers along with Philip Ellis and Indy Dontje. “You think of Houston as being big, but everybody there knows someone who was affected. Last night [Saturday] we learned that one of our sponsors’ guests here at Indy lost a niece in the tragedy. That whole area is a popular vacation spot; our family has gone there on vacation every year for many years.
“Some of the families designated non-profits for donations, and other families want to do things like build a playground or a butterfly garden in their daughter’s memory. We wanted to support all of them and do whatever we could to help the whole community heal. It is our honor to support this cause, and we urge all to donate whatever they can to fund these fine programs established by the families in lasting tribute to their daughters.”
