Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 victory by Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet) proved valuable for his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship hopes and season earnings, but it will be even more important to the disaster relief efforts for the Hurricane Sandy victims in the Northeast.
As part of the $1 million pledge and to help raise awareness for hurricane victims, Lowe’s announced that the home improvement company would match Johnson’s AAA Texas 500 race earnings as a donation to the American Red Cross disaster relief and rebuilding efforts.
Lowe’s, which had planned a minimum donation of $250,000 to the American Red Cross, had that generosity nearly doubled thanks to the dramatic green/white-checkered overtime win by Johnson. The victory resulted in Johnson earning $492,086 – the third-largest winner’s purse for this event – and Lowe’s earmarking a donation matching that amount to American Red Cross.
“In the Manhattan area in the building that Chani (Johnson’s wife) and I have an apartment in has been flooded and it’s still evacuated,” Johnson said on Friday. “Nobody can go in the building and the bottom two floors are underground and have been flooded and the main lobby had some damage, too. So it’s impacted us in a small way; to many others, in a much greater capacity. But it’s just a wild, wild deal up there.
“And to talk to our friends about the experiences they’ve had and to know how many people in Manhattan and all the surrounding areas that are dealing with all the water issues, it’s a sad thing. Hopefully, what we’re doing will help influence others to donate and try to help our friends up there.”
Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports together will donate an additional $48,000 to the Red Cross. In addition to the Red Cross donation, Lowe’s will use the remainder of its $1 million commitment to fund local projects in areas of greatest need as identified by its national nonprofit partners.
Individuals can join team up with Johnson and Lowe’s to help provide assistance by donating at their local Lowe’s store. Lowe’s stores throughout the United States and Lowes.com will accept donations to the Red Cross. The donations will help provide food, shelter, emotional support and other assistance to those impacted by Hurricane Sandy.
Donations also can be made at Lowe’s American Red Cross Online Donation Site, or by texting “REDCROSS” to 90999 or calling 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767). Since partnering with the Red Cross in 1999, Lowe’s and its customers have contributed more than $23 million for disaster relief.
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