Rick Hendrick

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Joseph Riddick Hendrick III (born July 12, 1949 in Warrenton, North Carolina), better known as Rick Hendrick is an owner of several NASCAR stock cars and teams, as well as Hendrick Automotive Group[1], one of the largest automotive chains in the United States.

Hendrick Motorsports, founded in 1984, is one of the most successful teams in NASCAR racing, with Sprint Cup championships won in 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2006, and 2007. As the head of Hendrick Motorsports, Rick Hendrick owns several race teams, including the Sprint Cup teams of Jeff Gordon (car owner: Rick Hendrick), Casey Mears (car owner: Mary Hendrick), Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (car owner: Rick Hendrick), and Jimmie Johnson (car owner: Rick Hendrick/Jeff Gordon). Past drivers include Geoff Bodine, Tim Richmond, Benny Parsons, Jimmy Means, who filled-in for Tim Ricmond in the #25 Folgers car for one race, at Charlotte in 1987, Darrell Waltrip, Ken Schrader, Ricky Craven, Wally Dallenbach, Jr., Joe Nemechek, Ricky Rudd, Terry Labonte, Brian Vickers, his son Ricky Hendrick, Kyle Busch, and Rick Hendrick himself.

The Hendrick Automotive Group was founded by Hendrick in 1976 as a single dealership in Bennettsville, South Carolina. Today, the company consists of more than 80 franchises in 10 states, and annual revenues are over $4 billion. Hendrick is currently serving as chairman of the company.

Rick Hendrick drove in the 1987 and 1988 Winston Cup races at Riverside International Raceway, finishing 33rd (out with transmission problems after racing to the Top 10) and 15th. He also had a single start in the Busch Series and the Craftsman Truck Series. He had been a pit crew member for Flying 11 that Ray Hendrick drove in the 1960s.[2]

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[edit] The Hendrick Marrow Program

In 1997, Hendrick chartered the Hendrick Marrow Program, a fundraising initiative that promotes tissue typing and supports those suffering from leukemia and other blood-related diseases. A member of The Marrow Foundation’s board of directors, Hendrick takes a personal approach to the cause after being diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia -- better known as “CML” -- in 1996.

Since its inception, the Hendrick Marrow Program has raised millions of dollars, added more than 75,000 volunteers to the National Marrow Donor Program Registry and assisted more than 2,000 patients with grants from the Hendrick Family Fund for Patient Assistance.

Hendrick and his wife Linda were honored in 1999 with The Marrow Foundation’s Leadership for Life Award, which recognizes individuals who have made an extraordinary commitment to the National Marrow Donor Program and The Marrow Foundation. Past recipients include Congressman C.W. Bill Young, baseball great Rod Carew and former postmaster general William J. Henderson.

[edit] The Hendrick Foundation for Children

Another of Hendrick's passions is the Hendrick Foundation for Children.

Established in 2004 by Hendrick's brother, the late John L. Hendrick, the Hendrick Foundation for Children provides programs and services to benefit youngsters with illness, injury, disability, or other hindrance. Continued in John Hendrick's memory, the organization has raised millions of dollars toward community-oriented initiatives that improve the quality of children's lives.

The Foundation committed $3 million in 2005 to assist in the establishment of Charlotte's 12-story, 234-room Levine Children's Hospital, a world-class facility dedicated to the needs of children and their families. In recognition of the gift, the hospital dedicated its pediatric intensive car centers in honor of Rick Hendrick's late son, RIcky. The hospital opened in October 2007.

[edit] The Joe Hendrick Center for Automotive Technology

In April 2004, Hendrick Automotive Group donated $1 million toward the construction of the Joe Hendrick Center for Automotive Technology, which opened in late 2006 on the Mattews, N.C., campus of Central Piedmont Community College, the largest community college in North Carolina.

The facility, named for Hendrick's late father, provides cost-effective, state-of-the-art training to prepare students for future careers in the automotive industry.

[edit] The Horatio Alger Award

In April 2006, Hendrick was presented with the prestigious Horatio Alger Award at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C.

Each year, the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans bestows the Horatio Alger Award on truly outstanding Americans. Association members are dedicated community leaders who demonstrate individual initiative and a commitment to excellence as exemplified by achievements accomplished through honesty, hard work, self-reliance and perseverance.

In accepting the award, Hendrick joined a group of prominent Americans that includes former U.S. Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan; Hall of Fame athletes Hank Aaron, Julius Erving and Wayne Gretzky; entertainers Waylon Jennings, Quincy Jones, James Earl Jones and Oprah Winfrey; author Maya Angelou; astronaut Buzz Aldrin; and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

[edit] Other

Gov. Jim Hunt recognized Hendrick in 1996 with The Order of the Long Leaf Pine, North Carolina’s highest civilian honor. The award is bestowed upon citizens of the state who have a proven record of extraordinary service. Past recipients include award-winning journalist Charles Kuralt, Rev. Billy Graham, artist Bob Timberlake and Hendrick’s late father, Joe Hendrick, who was presented the award by Gov. Mike Easley in 2004.

In 1997, Hendrick pleaded guilty[3] to mail fraud. In the 1980s, Honda automobiles were in high demand, and Honda executives allegedly solicited bribes from dealers for larger product disbursements. Hendrick admitted to giving hundreds of thousands of dollars, BMW automobiles, and houses to American Honda Motor Company executives. Hendrick was sentenced in December of that year to a $250,000 fine, 12 months home confinement (instead of prison, due to his leukemia), three years probation, and to have no involvement with Hendrick Automotive Group or Hendrick Motorsports during his year of confinement. In December 2000, Hendrick received a full pardon from President Bill Clinton.[4][5]

On October 24, 2004, Hendrick's son, Ricky Hendrick, two nieces and brother were killed in an airplane crash en route to the Subway 500 in Martinsville, Virginia. All eight passengers and both pilots died in the incident.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Hendrick Automotive Group
  2. ^ Benny Parsons' commentary, ESPN 26 hour marathon for the Top NASCAR races as it turns 50 years old at Riverside International Raceway. ESPN2. ESPN. 1999. 1:00 minutes in.
  3. ^ Kurz, Jr., Hank. "Hendrick Motorsports Plane Crash Kills 10", Associated Press, 2004-10-25. Retrieved on 2007-06-14. 
  4. ^ Clinton Pardons
  5. ^ DOJ listing of Hendrick's pardon

[edit] External links

Hendrick Motorsports
Sprint Cup drivers Casey Mears (#5) | Jeff Gordon (#24) | Jimmie Johnson (#48) | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (#88)
Driver development program
(under JR Motorsports)		 Landon Cassill | Brad Keselowski | Curtis Truex
Partnerships and affiliations Furniture Row Racing | Haas CNC Racing | JR Motorsports | Phoenix Racing
Sprint Cup crew chiefs Alan Gustafson (#5) | Steve Letarte (#24) | Chad Knaus (#48) | Tony Eury, Jr. (#88)
Other Rick Hendrick | Ricky Hendrick | Darian Grubb | Brian Whitesell