PORTLAND, Oregon — For two weeks prior to the Portland NASCAR car race, Schnitzer Steel, Pick-n-Pull Self-Service Auto Dismantlers and Bi-Mart spearheaded the “Racing to Stop Hunger” food drive, raising 7,997 pounds of food donations for people who are hungry. From employers and employees to customers and NASCAR fans, everyone sprang into action to make this effort a huge success.
The total amount of food collected was announced at the Bi-Mart Salute to the Troops 125, K&N Pro Series, West NASCAR event at Portland International Raceway (PIR) this past Sunday, July 18. Cash donations at the race event added an additional $20,821, bringing the grand total to the equivalent of 112,097 lbs. of food. This equates to 14% of Oregon Food Banks annual efforts (based on Oregon Food Bank’s estimated 800,000 pounds of food collected each year in independent food and fund drives).
“Raising awareness of the continuing need for food in our community is vital,” states Schnitzer Steel President and CEO Tamera Lundgren. “We all need to do our part to make sure that vulnerable seniors, families and children are nourished and fed.”
Tom Klauer, president of Pick-n-Pull, Rancho Cordova, CA, led another aspect of the campaign by driving Bill McAnally Racing’s No.25 in conjunction with Steel Racing by Schnitzer Steel, a Toyota Camry in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series, West during the Bi-Mart Salute to the Troops 125 at Portland International Raceway. This was the Series second visit to PIR and Tom’s debut in the K&N Pro Series, West division. Tom stated, “We are just excited to be able to spread the word about hunger awareness through this great race.” Notably, Tom finished 10th out of a field of 28 drivers in his debut.
After the race, Tom was asked, so what did you think about your debut? “Physically I felt a bit drained. Mentally I have been replaying it in my mind for the last 48 hours…unbelievable.” “This was one of my greatest days of my life, fulfilling a long time dream.”
About Pick N Pull:
Established in 1987, the Pick-n-Pull chain of self-service auto parts stores is a subsidiary of Schnitzer Steel Industries and one of the largest recyclers of end-of-life vehicles in the industry. You bring your tools, pull the parts you need and SAVE lots of money! Our 42 U.S. and 3 Canadian locations – including four stores in the local Portland/Vancouver Metropolitan market – offer a huge a selection of used OEM (original equipment manufacturer) parts for cars, vans and light trucks – all makes and models, foreign and domestic – all at incredibly low prices. Pick-n-Pull is proud of the fact that we recycle more than 300,000 vehicles and service more than 5 million self-service customers each year. For additional information please visit the following website: www.picknpull.com
Oregon Food Bank and its network providers help over 250,000 people each month throughout Oregon and SW Washington. Over 935 hunger-relief agencies count on the generosity of the community to meet the growing need of our most vulnerable citizens. And the need for food continues to grow. For a full description of the important work done by Oregon Food Bank, please go to the following website: www.oregonfoodbank.org.
The Bi-Mart Salute to the Troops “125” will be televised on Thursday July 29th on SPEED Channel at 3pm pacific time. Please check your local listings. The next race for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West will be at Montana Raceway Park on August 7th.
