Photo Credit: Noel Lanier
KKF Celebrates Giving at Annual Fan Day Event
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (May 21, 2015) — The Kasey Kahne Foundation (“KKF”), a 501(c) 3 committed to raising awareness and funds for charities supporting chronically ill children and their families, announced today that the charitable organization surpassed $1 million in donations distributed since being founded. NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne, KKF staff and hundreds of fans celebrated the giving milestone today at the annual Fan Day event at Kasey Kahne Racing shop in Mooresville, N.C.
“We never dreamed we could get to this point when we started the Kasey Kahne Foundation years ago, but the contributions we’ve received have been amazing,” said Kahne, a 17-time winner on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. “The Kasey Kahne Foundation has been fortunate to support thousands of children and families in need and make a positive impact on their lives.”
The beneficiaries of KKF have varied from major national organizations such as Make-A-Wish to smaller local organizations like the Boys and Girls Club of King County (Seattle, Wash.). The single largest gift made by the KKF was $500,000, originally pledged in 2007 to help fund construction of the Ronald McDonald House of Charlotte (N.C.). Other KKF beneficiaries have included Victory Junction, The Red Cross, Cornerstone Schools in Detroit, Mich., Friends of the NASCAR Hall of Fame, Kevin Gobrecht Memorial Fund, Lilly School, NC STEM, The Charlotte Bobcats Foundation, and Hope Park in Mooresville, N.C.
Kahne attributes many of the contributions by way of support of KKF events and campaigns promoted since inception, which have varied from sprint car races to VIP trip raffles. The first KKF promoted event was a charity sprint car race at Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. on August 30, 2006. KKF has hosted several more sprint car charity races in Kahne’s home state of Washington and also in Pennsylvania. In 2009, Kahne paired up with country music sensation Dierks Bentley to co-host a Bentley concert outside of Atlanta, Ga. The last couple years, KKF has promoted a “Fly Like Kahne” trip giveaway in which a fan won a trip aboard Kahne’s personal aircraft.
But the two most marquee events to date have been the 5Kahne, a 5k running race held annually in Uptown Charlotte during the October NASCAR race weekend, and The Drive, a new Seattle, Wash.-area concert and golf event with Seattle Seahawks Super Bowl quarterback Russell Wilson. Both are on the calendar again in 2015. The Drive is scheduled for June 29-30 to benefit Strong Against Cancer at Seattle Children’s Hospital. The sixth-annual 5Kahne returns to Charlotte on Oct. 11. New to the KKF calendar this year is a partnership with Omaze that will offer an once-in-a-lifetime experience to win a trip to Chicago to go kart against Kahne. Details will be announced later this summer.
“It’s a lot of hard work to put on events, but it is always worth it as we get so much great support from corporate partners, fellow drivers and sports stars, and especially fans,” Kahne added. “We are now hyper-focused on raising the next $1 million by continuing with our annual programs and events, plus adding new ones like the Omaze experience, which we are really excited about.”
About Kasey Kahne Foundation
The Kasey Kahne Foundation is a 501(c) 3 committed to raising awareness and funds for charities supporting chronically ill children and their families. The KKF also strives to empower youth and inspire their future through education by donating to programs dedicated to fulfilling children’s needs for success. Since 2005, Kasey has dedicated countless hours by visiting with ill children, granting their wishes and speaking to groups of school aged children about the importance of education. To learn more about fundraising events and supporting the KKF, please visit www.kaseykahnefoundation.org.
