(By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service)
Posted: Thursday,October 28th, 2010
In a deal Jeff Gordon described as “a completely new, cause-driven approach to sponsorship,” Hendrick Motorsports has partnered with the AARP Foundation in a three-year deal that will place the Drive to End Hunger as primary sponsor on Gordon’s No. 24 Chevrolet for 22 races each year.
The sponsorship is a perfect fit for Gordon, whose widespread philanthropic interests include his own Jeff Gordon Foundation—with focus on children’s causes—and an invitation-only membership in the Clinton Global Initiative, founded by former President Bill Clinton.
Gordon will serve as spokesperson for the Drive to End Hunger (www.DrivetoEndHunger.org) whose mission is to focus attention on the growing problem of hunger among older Americans. The AARP has approximately 38 million members, and the AARP Foundation is its affiliated charity.
27 October, 2010, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA Jo Ann Jenkins, Jeff Gordon and Rick Hendrick (2010, autostock, USA)
Though the design of the car hasn’t been finalized yet, Gordon will drive the Drive to End Hunger car in next year’s season-opening Daytona 500.
“When I look at our world of NASCAR and racing around in circles every weekend—we have such a giving community already, but to have a sponsor like this that’s going to get out there for 22 races and really be able to make a difference in every community we go into, as well as just raise awareness on a national and maybe even global level, I think this is really big,” Gordon said.
“This is not something that should be happening to Americans—it shouldn’t be happening to anyone, but it shouldn’t be happening to millions of Americans.”
Team owner Rick Hendrick said that, pending subsequent sponsor announcements, Gordon’s car will be fully subscribed. Long-time sponsor DuPont will remain on the car on a more limited basis as a primary sponsor.
Gordon quietly accepted membership in the Clinton Global Initiative and already is involved in a major project in Africa.
“We do several meetings throughout the year,” Gordon said of his involvement in CGI. “I had dinner with President Clinton a few months ago, after we had our first meeting. I’ve been able to sit and talk to people on a global level of all kinds of different causes and issues that are going on around the world.
“We actually just launched a refugee camp that we’re supporting. I’m in (what’s called) the ‘CGI Lead Group’ which is sort of the young, new up-and-comers in the philanthropy world. But it is a worldwide thing, and our first mission with that group is a refugee camp in Congo, one of the toughest places in the world to go into, but it’s something I’m really excited about and honored to be a part of.”
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