Catchfence

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (July 31, 2009) – On July 30, 2008, Richard and Judy Childress announced an ambitious plan — the first of its kind: working with Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, they would launch the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma, whose mission would be to prevent and treat the leading cause of death in children, serious injuries.

Twelve months later, while the hard work of education, prevention and research continues, a great deal has been accomplished. The Institute has:

· Designed an intensive first-responder training pilot program that will serve as a replicable national model

· Established 10 partnerships and affiliates, including with the World Health Organization / Centers for Disease Control, and the Pediatric Medical Device Institute

· Held a national conference that represented the first significant research dialogue on pediatric trauma

· Developed a consortium of 15 cross-appointed faculty, including nationally recognized researchers among pediatricians, pediatric surgeons and biomedical engineers

“My family and I truly appreciate the contributions made over the past year to the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma,” said Richard Childress, president and CEO of Richard Childress Racing and the Institute’s founder and chairman of the advisory board. “From the generous gifts of our financial donors to Dr. Meredith and everyone else that have devoted their professional lives to making the Institute a success, we have successfully launched the program and created a solid foundation to build on. We are still only in the beginning phase and will need the help of many others to make an impact on the number one killer of kids in our country – serious injury. The progress made in the first year makes us all even more determined to reach our ambitious goals.”

Each year, serious injuries claim the lives of more than 12,000 children in the United States—more than all other causes combined. The Institute’s goal is to save these lives and to help kids affected by these injuries recover to lead a more normal life.

“We are enthusiastic about the progress we’ve made, and impatient to move even faster, yet we want to move deliberately and hold ourselves to the highest standards,” said J. Wayne Meredith, M.D., Executive Director, Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma. “I believe we are ready to meet the rigorous requirements for being approved by the American College of Surgeons as a Level One Pediatric Trauma Center, and that within nine months we will receive this accreditation.”

To support the Childress Institute, contribute online or call us at 800-899-7128. To learn more, visit us online at www.ChildressPediatricTrauma.org.

About The Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma

The Childress Institute’s mission is to significantly improve survival rates of children nationwide who suffer serious injuries and reduce the lifelong impact of traumatic injuries in children. Richard Childress and his family are providing $5 million to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center to initiate the project. The Medical Center and the Childress family are working with corporations and individuals to raise awareness and an additional $20 million to establish the Institute’s endowment fund. As the national center for championing the care of children with life-threatening injuries, the Childress Institute will: continually raise awareness that serious injuries annually claim the lives of more children than all other causes of death combined; lead research and education efforts to prevent and treat injuries; and identify and help put in place the resources needed to reach more kids faster with the kind of care that makes a difference – in saving their lives and helping them lead a normal life.

About Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center

Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (www.wfubmc.edu) is an academic health system comprised of North Carolina Baptist Hospital, Brenner Children’s Hospital, Wake Forest University Physicians, and Wake Forest University Health Sciences, which operates the university’s School of Medicine and Piedmont Triad Research Park. The system comprises 1,056 acute care, rehabilitation and long-term care beds and has been ranked as one of “America’s Best Hospitals” by U.S. News & World Report since 1993. Wake Forest Baptist is ranked 32nd in the nation by America’s Top Doctors for the number of its doctors considered best by their peers. The institution ranks in the top third in funding by the National Institutes of Health and fourth in the Southeast in revenues from its licensed intellectual property.

About Richard Childress Racing

Richard Childress Racing (www.RCRRacing.com), celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2009, has earned more than 180 victories and 12 NASCAR championships, including six in the Sprint Cup Series with the legendary Dale Earnhardt. RCR was the first organization to win championships in the Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series. Its 2009 Sprint Cup Series lineup includes Casey Mears (No. 07 Jack Daniel’s), Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil), Jeff Burton (No. 31 Caterpillar) and Clint Bowyer (No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper). Its 2009 Nationwide Series lineup includes Bowyer, Burton and Stephen Leicht (No. 29 Holiday Inn) and Austin Dillon and Sean Caisse (No. 2 RCR Chevrolet). Austin Dillon, Ty Dillon and Ryan Gifford are RCR developmental drivers in both asphalt and dirt track racing.

- Richard Childress Racing, Press Release