Catchfence

• Texas Motor Speedway Employees Create Racing-Themed Mural To Help Eliminate Graffiti In Community

FORT WORTH, Texas (August 26, 2010) – Texas Motor Speedway staff members assisted the City of Fort Worth Parks and Community Services Department in its mission to clean up the community Thursday by painting a race-themed mural over graffiti during its second of four Speeding To Help community outreach events.

Speedway employees, armed with outline chalk, paint and brushes, helped turn a graffiti-targeted pedestrian tunnel on the south side of Fort Worth into a racing haven. The freshly painted tunnel is now complete with race cars, checkered flags, trophies, Texas Motor Speedway logo – including its new “No Limits” theme – and tributes to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stars Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon.

“Texas Motor Speedway’s help today can only strengthen our involvement with the community and help promote mural projects,” Senior Administrative Assistant of the Graffiti Abatement Program (GAP) Alison Letnes said. “With the help of volunteers like Texas Motor Speedway, GAP was able to save $16,000 last year. Murals projects are a great opportunity for individuals to get involved in the community and it’s simple and fun.”

The GAP program provides groups an opportunity to express themselves creatively whiles assisting the City of Fort Worth in eliminating graffiti. Graffiti, the number one property crime in the United States according to Keep America Beautiful, has plagued areas of Fort Worth.

Police studies show that painting murals on locations repeatedly vandalized with graffiti reduces the return of additional vandalism by 80 percent. The goal of the program is to find areas that have been vandalized with graffiti and paint over them in seven to 14 days with the help of volunteers.

“We’re extremely proud to make a contribution to the community and assist the city of Fort Worth’s fight against graffiti,” Texas Motor Speedway Vice President of Media Relations Mike Zizzo said. “Working with Fort Worth’s GAP program was an ideal way for our employees to exhibit civic pride while also getting to display their creativity.”

Previously this month, Texas Motor Speedway’s Speeding To Help community outreach program helped children prepare for the start of school at Christian Community Action’s “Back-to-School” store in Lewisville. Next week the program stops by Fort Worth’s Rosemont School to help assist sixth graders refurbish their educational garden. Speeding To Help will make its final stop Sept. 7 at the Southside Preservation Hall as employees will help the Southside Preservation Association in its ongoing refurbishing of the building.