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NASCAR Community Lending a Hand to Those Affected by Hurricane Helene

Several members of the NASCAR community (race teams, team personnel, and former drivers) are lending a helping hand to those impacted by the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene.

Joseph Srigley

Flooding recedes in the River Arts District in downtown Asheville, N.C. Sep 29, 2024; , USA; during the aftermath of flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. Helene's swath of destruction brought historic rainfall, flooding, power outages and 140-mile-an-hour winds across the Southeast. North Carolina that bore the brunt of damage, with vast swaths of cities like Asheville underwater, residents trapped in their homes with no lights or food and few functioning roads for rescue workers to help them.
Flooding recedes in the River Arts District in downtown Asheville, N.C. Sep 29, 2024; , USA; during the aftermath of flooding caused by Hurricane Helene. Helene's swath of destruction brought historic rainfall, flooding, power outages and 140-mile-an-hour winds across the Southeast. North Carolina that bore the brunt of damage, with vast swaths of cities like Asheville underwater, residents trapped in their homes with no lights or food and few functioning roads for rescue workers to help them. / Ken Ruinard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, several members of the NASCAR community are springing into action, working to provide supplies and support to those impacted by the storm that rolled through much of Eastern United States last week.

The hurricane, which reached Category 4 strength, made its first landfall on the coast of Florida before moving north and impacting people in several states, including South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Virginia, and many others.

Multiple communities in North Carolina, such as Asheville and Boone, sustained an extreme amount of damage from the storm, including the washing out of several roads because of floods or mudslides, which has created the need for supplies to be flown in.

NASCAR Cup Series organizations Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports have sent helicopters to the impacted areas with supplies, giving much-needed support to those unable to obtain necessities. Future NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Greg Biffle is doing the same, partnering with well-known YouTube creator Cleetus McFarland.

"What really prompted it, was I got a Facebook message that there was a family stranded up in the mountains in an Airbnb with young kids, and as you know people who rent Airbnbs don't have days or weeks' worth of canned food available," Greg Biffle told Shannon Spoke on Monday's episode of NASCAR Daily. "It started to become apparent right away that they weren't the only ones, so that brought attention to the situation and the scale of the situation."

"The effort is incredibly wide," added Biffle. "So, when we started, there were two helicopters in the air when we first saw the Facebook post. That next morning there were probably 20 helicopters that showed up, and by the end of the day there were probably 30-35 helicopters including NASCAR team, I think Hendrick [Motorsports] and [Joe Gibbs Racing] had their machines up in the air."

According to Biffle, an airport hanger in Statesville, North Carolina was completely full from the donations made by those who wanted to help in any way they possibly could. NASCAR Cup Series champion and co-owner of RFK Racing was among those.

Several other organizations and team personnel have been collecting donations, as well, including Kaulig Racing, whose Team President Chris Rice posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, where he showed pictures and videos of the team at work, picking up diapers, paper towels, granola bars, and other needed supplies to distribute to those in need.

Rice adds that those wanting to support the cause are more than welcome to bring donations to Kaulig Racing's shop, located in Welcome, North Carolina, and that the organization will make sure they get to a location in which they can help someone. On Tuesday, Dylan Coyle, one of the team's PR representatives, posted an image to social media that showed the donations people had dropped off at Kaulig Racing.

Joe Gibbs Racing is also accepting donations, posting on social media Monday that they are accepting donations of water, boxed non-perishable food, and tarps, and would be doing so until Tuesday at 10:00 AM ET. On Tuesday, the team made additional posts showing off some of the donations they've received.

While the deadline to drop supplies off at Joe Gibbs Racing has passed, the team has since included a DonorBox.org link leading to Game Plan for Life, where anybody can donate to the hurricane relief efforts by titling your donation "Hurricane Relief".

23XI Racing, the NASCAR Cup Series team co-owned by Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin, is also pitching in to support those impacted by the hurricane, with donations of $500,000 to both the NC Disaster Relief Fund and Second Harvest of Metrolina.

"Our hearts go out to everyone suffering from Hurricane Helene's devastation. 23XI Racing and I are honored to support the NC Disaster Fund Relief Fund and Second Harvest of Metroline as they help rebuild lives, restore hope and ensure that those affected receive the assistance they need," said Michael Jordan, co-owner of 23XI Racing. "While the process of recovery will take a long time, as a proud North Carolinian, I know firsthand the strength and resilience of the people in this state we call home, and we will get through this together."

In addition to the organization's substantial financial commitment, 23XI Racing is going to be accepting donations from Tuesday to Friday (October 1-4) from 7:30am to 5:00pm.

North Wilkesboro Speedway, which was scheduled to have a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event take place on Friday, has posted its event, with the racetrack now being designated as a drop-off location for people wanting to donate supplies.

Throughout the years, the NASCAR community has always been proactive in working together to support those in need, especially in the North Carolina area, where the majority of NASCAR National Series teams are based.

Any additional updates/news regarding NASCAR-related Hurricane Helene relief will be added to this story as an update.

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Joseph Srigley
JOSEPH SRIGLEY

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