SONOMA, Calif. (Sept. 26, 2016) — Charitable programs combined to raise more than $151,000 for Sonoma County youth groups during the Verizon IndyCar Series GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma weekend at Sonoma Raceway, Sept. 16-18.
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 $5.1 million to local youth-serving non-profit groups since 2001.
To officially kick-off the Verizon IndyCar Series Championship weekend, SCC partnered with the Michael Andretti Foundation to put on the IndyCar Grand Prix Salute at Andretti Winery in Napa. The beautiful evening included a Q&A session with Andretti Autosport drivers, including Ryan Hunter-Reay, Carlos Munoz and Alexander Rossi, winner of the 100th running of the 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 $35,000 for SCC.
The SCC IndyCar online charity auction, which featured autographed memorabilia, photos with IndyCar drivers and weekend VIP experiences, brought in $3,200 before the weekend kicked off. During race weekend, Great Clips raised nearly $2,500 in donations at its mobile hair salon in the main paddock, an additional $900 was raised through various donations throughout the weekend.
In addition to the proceeds generated for SCC, Levy Restaurants, the official caterer of Sonoma Raceway, hosted seven 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 Native Sons of the Golden West, Ohana 'Wa'a outrigger Club, Rancho Cotate Cheer, Benicia High School Band Boosters Club, Petaluma High School Athletic Club, California Martial Arts and Vallejo Raiders Youth Football programs, received a total of more than $110,000 after 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 Valerie Moody at [email protected] or 707-939-1454.
