Marine Corps Sgt. Robert Bogus and his wife Hiliary are just fine with rain falling today at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. Sure, they want to see the stars of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, but if they don’t, that’s OK too- they already had their once-in-a-lifetime moment this morning.
Thanks to Eckrich, the makers of naturally hardwood smoked sausage and savory deli meats, Marine Corps Sgt. Robert Bogus, a native of Kingsport (Tenn.), and his wife were honored by NASCAR Hall of Fame driver “The King” Richard Petty and driver of the No. 43 Ford, Aric Almirola, Sunday morning before the race.
Bogus and his family were greeted at the race track by the Richard Petty Motorsports team and escorted to meet the drivers. Petty and Almirola then surprised the family with $200 a week in free groceries for one year at Dollar General, courtesy of Eckrich. The family was also given crew shirts, hats and suite passes for today’s event.
Eckrich, a sponsor of the famed No. 43, has previously partnered with Petty and Almirola to honor, thank and support military families through its partnership with Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit that provides emergency financial and other assistance to the families of service members and wounded warriors. Richard Petty Motorsports has been a supporter of military families for many years, but each surprise is always unique and special.
“Eckrich really knows how to give back to our military families,” said Petty. “There are so many deserving military families and Eckrich continues to honor them with their own special way of saying ‘thanks’. It’s great to watch the reactions of the families. They are always humbled and appreciate that Eckrich takes time to pay tribute to their sacrifice.”
Bogus was as shocked as anyone Sunday morning.
“This is really priceless,” said Bogus. “I just wanted to come to the race. Operation Homefront and Eckrich said they had tickets, but I didn’t expect all of this. I am speechless and a little overwhelmed.
“I just walked onto this motorhome and there was Richard Petty and Aric Almirola,” continued Bogus. “I was happy to see them, but then they thanked my wife and I for our service. I looked down and they had a gift card for free groceries too. It was just really wonderful.”
Eckrich, in its fourth year of partnership with Operation Homefront, has already donated more than $750,000 to the charity since 2012. Eckrich is again donating up to $250,000 this year through the contribution of five cents from each purchase of specially marked products from May 1 through July 4.
“Like Eckrich, Dollar General and Richard Petty Motorsports are great supporters of our military families,” said Chuck Gitkin, vice president, marketing, innovation and R&D for John Morrell Food Group. “We are proud and honored to be able to show our appreciation with a once in a lifetime NASCAR experience and $200 a week in free groceries for one year at Dollar General.”
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