Dale Jr. Scholarship winners able to meet the legend during Food City 300 pre-race ceremonies

BRISTOL, Tenn.— The 2024 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Scholarship winners — Trea’zur Cassidy and Hannah Kelsheimer — had a special moment during pre-race ceremonies for the Food City 300 on Friday. The two aspiring communications professionals were able to meet Earnhardt Jr. before he walked across the stage during driver introductions.

Cassidy, a senior at Science Hill High School in Johnson City, Tenn., is interested in pursuing a career in communications, either in journalism, advertising or film production. She is currently involved at LXI, a Christ-centered after-school program for teens, and she also works part-time at Chuck E. Cheese restaurant. She recently participated in the Upward Bound program at East Tennessee State University.

Kelsheimer attends the University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) where she is a motorsports marketing major. She is interested in pursuing a career in professional motorsports, working in social media or as a digital content creator for drivers, tracks or race sponsors.

Earnhardt started 13th and finished 7th in his No. 88 Hellmann’s Chevy Camaro in the Food City 300. It was the second-straight year that the NASCAR Hall of Famer competed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at The World’s Fastest Half-Mile.

“I had a lot of fun out there tonight,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “Just to still be able to run up front and compete with these young guys is special for me. I know one day I’m not going to be able to do that. These kids are just so good.”

Created by Bristol Motor Speedway in 2017 as a retirement gift to Earnhardt Jr., the annual scholarship awards the winning students a one-time payment of $2,088 to assist with all college costs including tuition, housing, books and supplies. Past winners of the BMS Dale Earnhardt Jr. Scholarship are Jaicee Weaver (2018) and Jace Ketron (2019), both of Tennessee High School in Bristol, Tenn., UNOH student Caleb James Cate (2021) from Knoxville, Tenn., John Clavier of Elizabethton High School and UNOH student Chloe Holman of Essex, Mo. (2022), and the 2023 winners were Jamie Sullivan of UNOH and Caleb Kent of Happy Valley High School in Watauga, Tenn.

In order to be eligible, students must be a senior at one of the 21 designated high schools or attending one of the eight designated colleges and universities in the Appalachian Highlands region surrounding Bristol Motor Speedway or a student at the speedway’s official partnering institution, UNOH in Lima, Ohio.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. started 13th and finished 7th at the controls of his No. 88 Hellmann’s Chevy in the Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway Friday night.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SpeedwayMedia.com

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

RacingJunk.com and Leaf Racewear Safety Equipment Giveaway

Latest articles

Toyota GAZOO Racing – NCTS Bristol Post-Race Report – 04.11.25

Corey Heim battled for the win late before finishing third in the NASCAR Truck Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Friday evening.

Niece Motorsports NCTS Race Recap: Bristol Motor Speedway I

Honeycutt lost track position with Currey's late-race issues, but rebounded to finish a strong eighth.

Chandler Smith Wins First Race With Ford

Chandler Smith won his first race with Ford by capturing tonight’s race.

Chandler Smith scores first Truck victory of 2025 at Bristol; claims first Triple Truck...

The 22-year-old Smith from Talking Rock, Georgia, led a race-high 127 of 250-scheduled laps and capitalized through two late-race restarts under the final 14 laps to notch his first Truck victory in three years at the Last Great Colosseum.

Best New Zealand Online Casinos