SONOMA, Calif. (Sept. 26, 2017) — Charitable programs combined to raise more than $79,000 for local youth groups during the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma Verizon IndyCar Series weekend at Sonoma Raceway, Sept. 15-17.
Proceeds from the majority of events will benefit Sonoma County youth organizations through the Sonoma Chapter of Speedway Children's Charities (SCC), the charitable arm of the raceway, which has distributed more than $5.6 million to local youth-serving non-profit groups since 2001.
To kick-off the Verizon IndyCar Series Championship weekend, SCC partnered with the Michael Andretti Foundation to host the IndyCar Grand Prix Salute Banquet at Andretti Winery in Napa. The star-studded evening included a Q&A session with Andretti Autosport drivers, including Ryan Hunter-Reay, 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi, and Takuma Sato, winner of this year's Indianapolis 500, as well as three generations of Andrettis: Mario, Michael and Marco. The event, which included a reception, sit-down dinner and silent and live auction raised more than $56,000 for SCC.
The SCC IndyCar online charity auction, which featured autographed memorabilia, unique collectibles and weekend VIP experiences, brought in $6,100 before the weekend kicked off. During race weekend, an additional $580 was raised through various donations.
In addition to the proceeds generated for SCC, Levy Restaurants, the official caterer of Sonoma Raceway, hosted six local non-profit groups to support concession stands around the facility. In return for their hard work, Levy gives back a portion of sales to support those non-profit organizations. These groups, including the Benicia High School Band Boosters Club, California Martial Arts, Rancho Cotate High School Cheer, Petaluma Elks Club, Native Sons of the Golden West and Vallejo Raiders Youth Football programs, received a total of $16,753 from IndyCar weekend.
For more information about the Sonoma Chapter of Speedway Children's Charities or to make a donation, visit SonomaRaceway.com/scc or contact Cheri Plattner at (707) 933-3950 or [email protected]. If your non-profit group is interested in working with Levy Restaurants at an upcoming event, contact Kimberly Conte at [email protected] or 707-939-1454.
