NASCAR lending hand to Armed Forces Foundation (cont'd)

Driscoll, who has been deployed as a citizen to Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as Africa, Mexico and South America, and refers to every solider as her "brother and sister," remembered fondly one of the first families the AFF was able to assist.

"One of the first injuries of the [Iraq] war was a young Marine and we actually found his mom asleep in the parking lot in her car," Driscoll said. "She lost her home; she lost her job because she wasn't able to go back to work. Her son had lost both legs, one of his arms and was barely alive. She was eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich a day, which some of the [hospital] staff had noticed. She was sleeping in her car because she couldn't afford a hotel room.

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I think a lot of people are like me, they didn't realize what the AFF did or what it was about. Until I got involved, I didn't realize. If you had a sheet of paper and wrote down everything they do, there's just hundreds and hundreds of things they do. I like an organization that isn't tied into doing just one thing -- they just do it all and that's the AFF.

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-- DAVID REUTIMANN

"So when we found her like that she finally broke down and told us the only reason her car is not repossessed was they had no idea where she was and that was her home at the moment. So we stepped in and we realized that all of these families were in very big financial trouble. So we came in to pay all the bills for all the hotel rooms; we started giving financial relief to these families so they wouldn't lose their homes, so they could actually go home."

Since 2001, the AFF has grown its mission in its nine-year existence. While financial assistance remains the top priority, the AFF also offers career guidance, housing assistance and recreational therapy.

And that's where NASCAR comes into the equation.

"We started our partnership with NASCAR last year and have been doing awesome things -- bringing the troops from the hospital, getting them out to the race track," Driscoll said. "These guys are huge fans, never had the opportunity to go [to a race], never had the money to go and it's a great thing to get out of the hospital and come out and be greeted by some of the most patriotic fans of any sport that there is in America."

While the wounded soldiers may enjoy their time at the track, Cup drivers appreciate getting to know these men and women who have put their lives on the line for this country.

"We have probably six, seven races a year and we have guys come over and kind of hang out with us and it's a lot of fun to see those guys," Jeff Burton said. "They bust their ass. A lot of them come here, they're rehabbing and they've been injured pretty serious. So it's cool to see them out and doing something and hopefully it's something they enjoy."

Reutimann hopes his allegiance with the AFF will help open eyes to a serious problem facing our veterans. His goal is to let America's soldiers know the country appreciates their efforts and, as a country, with help from the AFF, they will be taken care of when they return home.

"I think a lot of people are like me, they didn't realize what the AFF did or what it was about. Until I got involved, I didn't realize," Reutimann said. "If you had a sheet of paper and wrote down everything they do, there's just hundreds and hundreds of things they do. I like an organization that isn't tied into doing just one thing -- they just do it all and that's the AFF.

"So I think the opportunity is here to spread the word and just kind of say, 'Thank you' to those people that have fought -- whatever war they fought in or if they're still fighting now -- and let them know that there is an organization over here that will do their best to take care of them if they come back and things don't go the way they need to over there."