Jimmie Johnson Foundation Dinner Serves A Reminder Of NASCAR Drivers’ Generosity

This is a positive story about Jimmie Johnson. But don’t run away.

You may dislike Johnson the driver. He’s been an assassin both on the track and on the spirits of many fans, crushing the competition and everyone’s favorite drivers on the way to four straight championships.

But put that aside for a moment – or a few – to read about the good Johnson is doing for his community.

On Tuesday night in San Diego, I decided to stop by the Jimmie Johnson Foundation’s annual charity dinner/auction. Having been to some similar occasions before, they can tend to be a bit stuffy and not necessarily the most interesting material for a story.

But when I began wandering around the pre-dinner cocktail reception, I noticed a table set up with two young students who were operating computer-controlled cars.

I asked one of them what the deal was. The student, J.T. Duboise, said he was an eighth-grader who had always been interested mechanical things like taking apart old VCRs and putting them back together, but wasn’t so keen on math or science.

Clearly, looking at his creation, he was now. To describe what Duboise made is honestly above my pay grade, but it was like a remote-controlled car without a body on it and hooked up to a computer.

Figuring it had to take this kid months to make the car, I asked him how much time he spent on it.

“Oh, about 10 hours,” he said. “Maybe 14. I had to try six times to get it the way I wanted it. You learn to troubleshoot and figure out what’s wrong.”

What!? I never heard of learning stuff like this when I was in eighth grade.

Nearby, his principal beamed and laughed as she looked at my shocked face. It turns out this was part of a program every student at El Cajon’s Emerald STEM Middle School was going through.

Here’s where Johnson comes in: All of the computers and the equipment for the program were funded by a Jimmie Johnson Foundation grant of $100,000. Johnson’s foundation also gives money to schools in North Carolina and Oklahoma (where his wife, Chani, is from).

Last year, the foundation gave away nearly $1 million in grants to 27 different educational programs. And Johnson’s foundation raised even more money at Tuesday’s dinner. A lot more.

In a ballroom packed with donors who had paid $500 a plate, former NFL defensive back Jason Sehorn (a close Johnson friend) prodded and cajoled the crowd into parting with their cash for a good cause.

Guests sent text messages of their donation pledges that appeared on a big screen (One donated $4,800 in honor of Johnson’s newborn daughter) and then bid during a lively auction for some unique items and experiences.

Thanks to winning bids like $20,000 for a personal tour of Rick Hendrick’s massive car collection and $18,000 for the “Helmet of Hope” Johnson will wear this weekend, the live auction alone raised more than $85,000.

And the main fundraising event, a charity golf tournament, was scheduled for today.

It was easy to get caught up in the amount of money being raised. We often hear about dollars going to charities but don’t usually see the direct impact for ourselves.

Then the young Duboise took the stage to give a touching speech that put it all in perspective.

He thanked Johnson for being so generous and said his mind has been opened after working in the robotics lab funded by Johnson’s foundation. Without the grant, he may have never considered the engineering path.

“Because of Mr. Johnson, my creativity has come to life,” Duboise said. “...It’s inspired me to focus.”

Johnson quickly popped up on stage after hearing Duboise’s comments and invited him to Auto Club Speedway this weekend.

“We have this championship on the line,” Johnson told him. “With your engineering background, we could use your help.”

Attending Johnson’s dinner was a reminder that the greatest part of NASCAR is the generosity of the drivers. Nearly all of them have charitable foundations like Johnson’s, benefiting a variety of causes.

And they’re capable of making a tremendous impact on other people. To see a real-life example like Duboise made that point very clear.

As Sehorn said: “You realize it’s not just money being raised. It’s a tangible, end result.”