>> CARA Programs
Children's health and safety has been a primary focus of CARA since its inception, however as an ambassador for the industry, CARA occasionally supports other community-based programming and causes for members and organizations in the Motorsports family.
National Programming
Buckle Up Baby™
Buckle Up Baby is CARA's nationally-recognized child safety program in partnership with Bridgestone of Americas Trust Fund. Nearly $1 million has been donated to area hospitals in order to provide infant and special-needs car seats for needy families in the communities that host major open-wheel racing events. This program has impacted the safety of thousands of children throughout the United States. Funds donated to the hospitals have been used to not only purchase seats, but also support various programs such as children's car seat safety programs and the development of specialized seats for injured children.
In 2000, CARA was awarded the National Highway Safety Adminsitration's Buckle Up America Award. "Our Bridgestone of America's Trust Fund is a proud supporter of CARA Charities and the Buckle Up Baby program," said Al Speyer, executive director of Bridgestone Motor Sports. "In addition to providing financial support, we have been working with CARA to educate and increase the awareness of the need for and proper use of child safety seats. These seats reduce injury by 71% for infants less than one year old and have saved the lives of nearly 7,000 children."
CARA Cares
For many years, CARA has provided a presence for the Motorsports industry in local children's hospitals throughout the country with visits to pediatric wards by drivers, CARA members and the Firestone Firehawk. Our goal with each visit is to deliver hope and happiness for children that are otherwise fearful of their environment while overcoming injury or illness. Each visit generally includes room-to-room visits and toy distribution.
The CARA Wish
CARA Charities is about kids, especially their safety and well-being. Sometimes children have to face the unthinkable as they fight just to survive. In 2010, CARA Charities created The CARA Wish in an effort to grant the wishes of sick children on behalf of the Motorsports family. To help kick off the new program, CARA granted the wish of a child through the Indiana Children's Wish Fund. Supporting the program at any level allows us to help these children in need in markets around the country.
CARA Motorsports Scholarship
CARA is proud to invest in the future of Motorsports by offering the industry's first student scholarship for the nation's first Motorsports engineering program. First and second-year students [both in-state and out-of-state] admitted to the Motorsports Engineering Program at Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI) are eligible to apply. Please visit Scholarship Center at IUPUI for more information or to apply.
