Target House 200 Raises Funds for Children
If the following text-only file is not easily readable, particularly any tables of numbers, try enlarging this window since every line has a forced end and there is no word-wrap. Otherwise, this report will look and print better from the following PDF file: http://www.sportssystems.com/applib/PDFload.cfm?file=/email/filehost/PO079.pdf&id=BC079PO27A499 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Contacts: Brie Heath Target Stores 612-696-3445 Mike Sheldon Tunheim Partners 952-851-7287 TARGET HOUSE 200 RAISES MORE THAN $80,000 FOR CHILDREN Funds Donated to Target House and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital MINNEAPOLIS (November 12, 2003) -- The first annual Target House 200 NASCAR Busch Series race kicked off on Saturday, November 8, and helped raise more than $80,000 for Target House and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Target, General Mills and several other associate sponsors joined together to help raise the funds for Target House, a home away from home for families and children receiving care at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn. The race, held at North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham, N.C., was started live via satellite from Memphis, where several Target House residents made the familiar starting call, "Gentlemen, start your engines." "It's wonderful to be associated with a nationally televised NASCAR race like the Target House 200," said Richard Shadyac, National Executive Director of ALSAC/St. Jude, the hospital's fund-raising arm. "Target has been a wonderful supporter and we appreciate how they have partnered with the racing community to raise awareness and additional funding." To help raise funds for Target House, Target sold souvenir die-cast racecars on target.com, with all proceeds benefiting Target House. In addition, General Mills donated $50,000 from a portion of sales of select, specially-marked snack products sold at Target stores. The General Mills snack products included Fruit Gushers, Pop Secret Popcorn, Fruit Roll-Ups and Chex Mix. The Target Chip Ganassi Racing team associate sponsors including Fujifilm, Coca-Cola, Reckitt Benckiser, Nestle Purina and Clorox also committed an additional $30,000 to Target House. -more- Target House 200…/2 "We're pleased with the success of the Target House 200 and look forward to making it an annual event in the NASCAR Busch Series," said John Remington, vice president, events marketing and communications, Target Corporation. "This was a true team effort, thanks to the partnership of General Mills and our associate sponsors." Target has a long history of supporting motorsports and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The Target Chip Ganassi Racing team has supported St. Jude and Target House since 1997 through donations from the race team. The team provides $25 for each lap lead, $1,000 for each pole position and $5,000 for every race win. Over the past six seasons, the team has raised more than $350,000 for the hospital and Target House. During the race, Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver Casey Mears ran in the top three in 180 of the 197 laps alongside Ganassi teammates Jamie McMurray and David Stremme. Mears suffered a flat tire with less than 20 laps left in the Target House 200, and Jamie McMurray captured the victory. Mears finished the race in 21st place. About Target House Funded by Target Stores and its vendor and celebrity partners, Target House is a home- away-from-home for families with children receiving life-saving treatment at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. As an extension of St. Jude's commitment to care for any child regardless of the family's ability to pay, Target House provides fully furnished apartments, free-of-charge. Based in Memphis, Tenn., St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is internationally recognized for its pioneering work in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. About Target Stores Minneapolis-based Target Stores serves guests at 1,227 stores in 47 states nationwide by delivering today's best retail trends at affordable prices. Whether visiting a Target store or shopping online at target.com, guests enjoy a fun and convenient shopping experience with access to thousands of unique and highly differentiated items. Target Stores, along with its parent company Target Corporation , gives back more than $2 million a week to its local communities through grants and special programs. Since opening its first store in 1962, Target has partnered with nonprofit organizations, guests and team members to help meet community needs. # # #