CARQUEST Auto Parts & Stafford Speedway Team Up to Raise Over $50,000 for Charity with Champions for Charities Event
Stafford Springs, CT — In its third year of existence, CARQUEST Champions For Charities was another smashing success as 13 open wheel championship winning drivers raised over $50,000 for their various charities. Each driver raised money for their respective charity with the driver raising the most money starting in pole position for the 15-lap feature. The event was won by Richie Pallai, Jr., who was racing to raise money for the Catherine Hubbard Animal Sanctuary in Newtown, CT.
“We were thrilled with the response we saw for this event,” said CARQUEST VP of Marketing Rich Pallai. “To raise over $50,000 this year puts us at over $150,000 for the three years we’ve done CARQUEST Champions For Charities and it speaks to the generosity of the racing community. I always like to say that we’re like one big family and this proves that the racing community is one big family. The success of CARQUEST Champions For Charities is a credit to everyone who donated, the drivers, and especially Lisa Arute for all her hard work in coordinating this event.”
Special invitations were extended to 13 open wheel champions for the race and each driver selected a charity that they would be representing. Leading the way in the charity race was 2008 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Champion and 8-Time Stafford SK Modified® champion Ted Christopher, who raised $8,160 for the Racing Against Cancer. David Arute was second with $7,305 raised for Lustgarten Foundation to fight Pancreatic Cancer, Stan Mertz raised $6,371 for the Connecticut Chapter of Autism Speaks, Ronnie Silk raised $5,570 for Alzheimer’s Association, Rob Richardi, Jr. raised $4,780 for the Massachusetts Chapter of Autism Speaks, Richie Pallai, Jr. raised $4,246 for the Catherine Hubbard Animal Sanctuary, Ron Midford raised $3,000 for the Troy Russell Benefit Fund, Doug Coby raised $2,622 for the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, Woody Pitkat raised $2,275 for Victory Junction Gang Camp, Ryan Preece raised $2,230 for the Connecticut Chapter of Make-A-Wish, Bob Potter raised $881 for Compassion for Cats of New London County, Ron Yuhas, Jr. raised $1,498 for the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, and Randy Cabral raised $400 for the The Spalding Foundation.
The 15-lap CARQUEST Champions For Charities event featured each open wheel champion driver behind the wheel of a Wild Thing Kart Senior Outlaw machine, which competes on Stafford’s Mini-Mile on Monday nights. The event featured plenty of thrilling racing with three and four-wide a common occurrence. Pallai had to hold off a furious charge from last year’s CARQUEST Champions For Charities feature winner Ron Midford, Jr., Doug Coby, and Ted Christopher in order to take the checkered flag.
For more information, contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR