Ford Juvenile Diabetes contest news 2010-10-13

EIGHT YEAR OLD'S "FIRED UP FOR A CURE" PAINT SCHEME SELECTED AS WINNER IN FORD CUSTOMER SERVICE DIVISION'S NASCAR DESIGN CONTEST TO SUPPORT JUVENILE DIABETES RESEARCH FOUNDATION

* Carson Luther, an eight-year-old resident of Wildwood, MO, designed the winning paint scheme that will appear on the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car during the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on October 16.

* Ford Customer Service Division's Funny Car design contest helped raise awareness and $33,391 for JDRF and for research for Type 1 diabetes.

CONCORD, NC, October 13, 2010 - One young man wants to tell the entire NASCAR community that he's fired up to find a cure for type 1 diabetes - and he plans on using the paint scheme on the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion running this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway to get the point across to millions of fans nationwide.

Carson Luther, an eight-year-old resident of Wildwood, MO, was selected as the winning designer of the Ford Customer Service Division's (FCSD) NASCAR Design Contest to Support the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).

His design, entitled "JDRF - Fired Up for A Cure" was officially unveiled for the first time today at the Wood Brothers' Racing shop today, with Luther and his family on hand.

"I wanted fire and flames on my car, and thought the blue would make the flames stand out," said Carson Luther. "I want a cure for diabetes more than anything, even all the LEGOs in the world."

For the past two years JDRF children have helped design the paint scheme featured on the NHRA Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang Nitro Funny Car, driven by Bob Tasca III. This year, in honor of the Wood Brothers celebrating 60 years of racing Ford products in NASCAR, FCSD has decided to bring the successful contest over to the legendary race team.

"We're excited to see how Carson's design performs on the race track this weekend. It looks great," said Eddie Wood, co-owner of Wood Brothers Racing. "We're honored to be part of a program this year and help raise money for such a worthwhile cause. Carson and his family are our guests this weekend, where we can educate the NASCAR community and raise awareness for type 1 diabetes."

The Luther family, along with Wood Brothers Racing, Bill Elliott, driver of the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion and representatives from FCSD, were on hand for the unveiling today, Carson and his family will attend their first NASCAR race weekend and watch the JDRF-themed race car qualify for the Bank of America 500.

"This is my first NASCAR race," said Luther. "My Mom, Grandma, Uncle and sisters are here with me in Charlotte and we're really excited to see my design on the race car this weekend."

Luther raised $5,341 for JDRF with his design. That number, added to the money raised by the designs that were submitted, brought the total for the contest to $33,391 for research for Type 1 diabetes, and nearly $150,000 in donations the past three years.

"Carson's design looks fantastic on the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Fusion," said David Arne, Group Marketing Manager, Ford Customer Service Division. "Carson was very active in this year's contest and is an excellent spokesperson for JDRF."

Each design was featured on www.jdrf.org/ford from July 6 to September 3, a total of 60 days in honor of Wood Brothers Racing's 60-year anniversary of racing Ford products in NASCAR. During that time, the public was invited to vote for their favorite car design by making a monetary donation to JDRF. The top five donation-earning designs were narrowed down to one by a panel of judges from Ford Motor Company.

"The generosity shown from people from all across this country to help find a cure for type 1 diabetes was remarkable," said Arne. "This year we raised more than $33,000 towards finding a cure."

Diabetes affects more Ford families than any other disease. Ford Motor Company has raised more than $27 million for JDRF since the grassroots campaign started in 1998.

About Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) JDRF is the worldwide leader for research to cure type 1 diabetes. It sets the global agenda for diabetes research, and is the largest charitable funder and advocate of diabetes science worldwide.

The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that strikes children and adults suddenly, and can be fatal. Until a cure is found, people with type 1 diabetes have to test their blood sugar and give themselves insulin injections multiple times or use a pump - each day, every day of their lives. And even with that intensive care, insulin is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications, which may include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation.

Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.3 billion to worldwide diabetes research, including more than $107 million last year. For more information, call 1-800-533-CURE (1-800-533-2873) or visit www.jdrf.org.

-source: ford racing