Elliott Wins Second Quarter Voting for NASCAR True Value Man of the Year
18 July 1997
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - Elliott, the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup champion and 11-time most popular driver, is the second-quarter nominee for the 1997 NASCAR True Value Man of the Year award. True Value, the Official Hardware Store of NASCAR, for the second consecutive year is sponsoring the NASCAR True Value Man of the Year. An award designed to honor a driver who proves one can be a winner off the track as well, the award is based on off-track involvement such as community service and charitable efforts. And for his many off-track efforts while running his own race team as well as fielding cars in the NASCAR Busch Series for young driver Ron Barfield, Elliott has been named the second-quarter nominee. It's a fitting nomination for Elliott, who shares his time with several charitable foundations. Elliott's love for children (he works closely with his primary sponsor McDonald's on many functions) family and his work with the less fortunate helped garner the veteran driver the nomination. On Friday, July 25, Elliott will serve as the honorary chairman of the First Annual Dawson County (GA) American Cancer Society Relay for Life. The fund raiser is dedicated to the memory of Elliott's nephew and up-and-coming driver Casey, who passed away on Jan. 14, 1996 at the age of 21 following a two-year battle with cancer. "Being the honorary chairman of such an outstanding event as this is an honor in itself," said Elliott. "To know that all the people volunteering their time and participating in a worthwhile cause is something everyone should be proud of." Along with being the honorary chairman, Elliott also is serving on the Relay for Life committee board with wife Cindy and other family members. "Our whole family is behind this deal 100 percent," Elliott said. "Everyone is involved in some measure to make sure it's a complete success and that everyone realizes that cancer is an important issue. I think Casey would be proud that this event is being held in honor of him. He was such a good kid. The way he handled himself, being positive and optimistic throughout his ordeal was unbelievable." The 24-hour relay is a unique fund raising event that helps raise millions of dollars to aid the effort to help prevent cancer and support those battling the life-threatening disease. More than 23 teams (with 10 people to a team) have signed up to participate with each team expecting to raise at least $100. Event organizers expect to raise more than $10,000, which will go towards cancer research, prevention programs and patient services. Elliott has also worked closely with McDonald's Ronald McDonald House Charities program. Ronald McDonald House has provided a home away from home for nearly 2 million family members of hospitalized patients since it began in 1974. There are 175 such houses in 14 different countries. In addition, Elliott has spent countless hours with patients diagnosed with life-threatening diseases, encouraging them to not give up. "The things I do with charities, meeting and calling people, is not something I do for notoriety," said Elliott. "If I can make someone's day a little bit better or make a kid forget about his pain for awhile, then I feel good. Us drivers live for racing. But sometimes you have to take the time to see things outside of racing. That's what I will try to continue to do." For the purpose of determining the NASCAR True Value Man of the Year award winner, the NASCAR Winston Cup schedule has been divided into four quarters in which drivers are nominated for their off-track efforts. The national NASCAR True Value Man of the Year will be chosen by a blue chip panel from the list of quarterly nominees. The year-end winner will receive a prize of $50,000 which will be divided evenly between the driver and a charity of his choice. In addition to the NASCAR True Value Man of the Year, True Value sponsors the Man of the Race Award, which goes to the eligible driver who wins each of the 31 NASCAR Winston Cup championship events. Each True Value Man of the Race Award winner receives $1,000 with an additional $1,000 going to the charity of his choice. Who will join Elliott and first-quarter nominee Kyle Petty as the third-quarter recipient will be announced September 16th. By NASCAR Public Relations
