The Graham Rahal Foundation will auction the helmet that Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver, Graham Rahal, wore in the 2013 MAVTV 500 IndyCar Series season finale to raise money for children's charities.
The auction will be held on Rahal's celebrity eBay page at http://givingworks.ebay.com/graham-rahal/ between 9 a.m. ET, Monday, Mar. 31 and 9 a.m. ET Monday, April 7, 2014. Proceeds will benefit both of the Graham Rahal Foundation's charities, Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer and SeriousFun Children's Network.
Before the IndyCar Series finale at Auto Club Speedway, the second annual Graham Rahal Foundation Helmet Design Contest gave fans the opportunity to be involved in the design process for his race weekend helmet. Fans from across the nation participated in the contest and submitted their personal designs.
Rahal selected the top-five designs and posted them on both the contest website and his mobile application for iPhones and Androids. Fans voted for the winning helmet design, which features Rahal interacting with kids, and it was painted by Art Rotondo, who provides the artwork for all of Rahal's Bell helmets. Rahal wore the helmet during the IndyCar Series finale at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.
"The second annual helmet design contest was a huge success," said Rahal. "The fans' interest in creating some great designs was better than ever before. The winner submitted an incredible design that highlighted exactly what we do, and the children we help, at the Graham Rahal Foundation. I was very proud to wear the helmet in the IndyCar Series finale and hope it raises some great money for our two charities. The winning bidder of this helmet will see it is truly race worn. It looks as if it's been through battle and has a great patina that one can really cherish for many years to come. The main thing is, we are all here to raise money to help improve lives of children less fortunate than us all around the world."
About The Graham Rahal Foundation:
The Graham Rahal Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization founded by Graham Rahal. The Foundation is dedicated to helping children with medical conditions, a cause that was important to Rahal's former race team owner and friend, the late actor and philanthropist Paul Newman. Through various fundraising events and activities, the Graham Rahal Foundation helps Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer and SeriousFun Children's Network. For more information on the Graham Rahal Foundation, visitGrahamRahal.com/Foundation<http://www.grahamrahal.com/foundation>.
About Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation:
Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) emerged from the front yard lemonade stand of cancer patient Alexandra "Alex" Scott (1996-2004). In 2000, 4-year-old Alex announced that she wanted to hold a lemonade stand to raise money to help find a cure for all children with cancer. Since Alex held that first stand, the Foundation bearing her name has evolved into a national fundraising movement, complete with thousands of supporters across the country carrying on her legacy of hope. To date, Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, a registered 501(c)3 charity, has raised more than $75 million toward fulfilling Alex's dream of finding a cure, funding over 375 pediatric cancer research projects nationally. For more information on Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, visitAlexsLemonade.org<http://www.alexslemonade.org/>.
About SeriousFun Children's Network:
SeriousFun Children's Network is a growing global community of 30 camps and programs serving children with serious illnesses and their families, always free of charge. Founded by Paul Newman in 1988, SeriousFun has served more than 440,000 children and families from more than 50 countries. Each member camp is an independent, not-for-profit organization dependent upon private funding to serve all children at no cost to their families. A Support Center raises funds and provides central standards and services for all SeriousFun camps and programs. To learn more about SeriousFun, visit SeriousFunNetwork.org<http://www.seriousfunnetwork.org/>.
