Speedway raises over $23K for childhood cancer

The Shawano Speedway held Racing for a Reason, an event which saw the organization raise $23,891 for Child Life Services on July 30.

Since Racing for a Reason started 12 years ago, the Shawano Speedway has raised over $224,000 for Child Life Services of St. Vincent in Green Bay.

The event was started after former Shawano Speedway’s promotions and operations manager Brad Luepke’s son, Reed, was diagnosed with leukemia.

“It actually feels really good to put this on to raise money for cancer,” said Linda Springborn, who was on the committee for Racing for a Reason. “We went out collecting donations and everyone was very receptive towards it. Mostly everyone that asked donated and we got a good turnout.”

With Luepke recently leaving the speedway, Springborn said it was important to keep the event going.

“Brad had started it to benefit childhood cancer,” said Springborn. “We felt that even with Brad leaving, we wanted to continue hosting this event, as the proceeds go to a big cause. We just wanted to keep this going.”

Springborn said that almost everything with the event stayed the same as previous years, noting that the only thing that was different was the limited amount of time that the organization had to put the event together.

“We had five weeks to get everything ready,” said Springborn. “Normally, they start right away after the event for the next year. Unfortunately, we lost our promoter, so we just made a committee and got it done.”

She added that Racing for a Reason is often one of the most attended events that the speedway puts on.

“It is a big one,” said Springborn. “I think that part of raising money has to do with that.”

In terms of reception to the event, Springborn said that visitors have given very positive feedback.

“I received messages from quite a few people that said they wanted to make a donation and thanked us for keeping the event going,” said Springborn. “We plan to continue this in the future.”

lreimer@newmedia-wi.com