Children’s Charities raises $300K for county nonprofits

Forty-eight Sonoma County nonprofit organizations will benefit from nearly $300,000 that was generated during the 2014 motor-racing season at Sonoma Raceway.

The Sonoma Chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities (SCC), the raceway’s charitable arm, raised $294,158 to help children in need through 12 fundraising events in 2014, an increase of more than $58,000 from the prior year.

The monies were generated through events held during the raceway’s major-event weekends, including NASCAR, NHRA and INDYCAR. Highlights of the year included the Children’s Champions NASCAR Grand Marshal’s Banquet and the Ride of a Lifetime NASCAR Charity Auction, which combined to raise more than $80,000 during the Toyota/Save Mart 350 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekend in June. The Indy Grand Prix Salute, a partnership between SCC and the Andretti Foundation, generated more than $30,000 for SCC. The 10th annual Classic Sports Racing Group’s (CSRG) Charity Challenge generated another $39,800 for the Sonoma chapter and a 3J’s Motorcycle Track Day raised an additional $21,846.

Forty-eight Sonoma County nonprofits received grants totaling more than $266,846 from the Sonoma chapter, the majority of which were distributed to Sonoma County youth groups at the chapter’s annual board of trustees meeting in mid-November. The chapter has distributed $4.8 million to Sonoma County youth groups since 2001.

In addition to financial grants, the Redwood Empire Food Bank received a donation of two truckloads of food, household necessities and personal-care items valued at $25,000 via SCC’s partnership with Feed the Children.

“Through our Mother and Child program, which the SCC grant supports, we are able to serve two hot meals a day to over 300 children during the year as well as purchase equipment for the play yard,” said Cheryl Parkinson, executive director of The Living Room in Santa Rosa. “Speedway Children’s Charities has been great for our program, as funds are very competitive and we don’t get much government funding so foundations like SCC are what make our programs thrive.” 

Speedway Children’s Charities is a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds for qualified children’s organizations. Founded in 1984 by Bruton Smith, chairman of Speedway Motorsports Inc., SCC originated at Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina and now boasts eight chapters around the country.

The following 48 Sonoma County youth groups will receive funding from Speedway Children’s Charities in 2014: Big Brothers and Big Sisters of the North Bay; Boys and Girls Club of Central Sonoma County; Boys and Girls Club of Sonoma Valley; Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Santa Rosa; Child Parent Institute; Committee on the Shelterless (COTS); Conservation Corps North Bay; Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA); Fence at the Top, Inc.; Forget Me Not Children’s Services; Friends in Sonoma Helping; Hanna Boys Center; Healdsburg Education Foundation; Individuals NOW; La Luz Center; LandPaths; Legal Aid of Sonoma County; LifeWorks of Sonoma County; Martial Arts Youth Institute; Matrix A Parent Network & Resource Center; Mentor Me Petaluma; North Bay Children’s Center; On the Move; Pediatric Dental Initiative of the North Coast; Petaluma People Services Center; Redwood Empire Food Bank; River to Coast Children’s Services; Roseland Charter School; Santa Rosa Community Health Centers; Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital; Sonoma County Public Library Foundation; Sonoma Ecology Center; Sonoma Valley Community Health Center; Sonoma Valley Education Foundation; Sonoma Valley Education Foundation (Sonoma Valley School Garden Project); Sonoma Valley Education Foundation (Kid Scoop); Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance; Sonoma Valley Teen Services; Sunny Hills Services; The Ceres Community Project; The Living Room; The Redwood Empire Conflict Resolution Services (RECOURSE); The Salvation Army; Valley of the Moon Children’s Home Foundation; Verity; WillMar Family Grief and Healing Center, Worth Our Weight and the Young Women’s Christian Association of Sonoma County.

For more information on the Sonoma chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities, visit www.racesonoma.com/scc or contact Cheri Plattner at cplattner@racesonoma.com or 933-3950.