TDJF, Nationwide Children’s ‘Sock It to Childhood Cancer’

Socks Designed by Patient Champion Help the Quest for a Cure

August 1, 2019
Sock It To Cancer Patient Champion Design

Eight-year-old Patient Champion Carter Nance of Columbus designed this year's 'Sock It to Childhood Cancer’ socks. The socks are now on sale to help the fight against childhood cancers.

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Aug. 1, 2019) – In honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, The Dale Jr. Foundation and Nationwide Children’s Hospital have teamed up to ‘Sock It to Childhood Cancer.’ Socks designed by 8-year-old Patient Champion Carter Nance of Columbus, are now on sale to help fortify the fight against childhood cancers, and the socks are available for purchase today. Additionally, Sept. 27 has been established as “Sock It to Childhood Cancer Day” and all who have them are encouraged to show off their socks on social media. Funds raised from sales of the socks will go directly to the Dale and Amy Earnhardt Fund at Nationwide Children’s Hospital for the purpose of childhood cancer and rehabilitation research.

Carter, who loves video games and NASCAR, spends his time at Nationwide Children’s Hospital playing with his toys and enjoys spending time with his little brother and sister. Always healthy and happy, Carter received a devastating diagnosis shortly after his fifth birthday: a tumor at the base of his brain had connected to his spinal cord. After surgery, young Carter recuperated in the Nationwide Children’s Inpatient Rehab Unit, which is the home of the Dale and Amy Activity Room.

“One of the many reasons Amy and I started the Dale and Amy Earnhardt Fund at Nationwide Children’s Hospital was to raise money and awareness to help with pediatric care, advocacy and research,” said Earnhardt Jr. “The Sock It to Childhood Cancer initiative helps us do just that. Purchasing these socks will help children like Carter and his family deal with a devastating disease like childhood cancer. Amy, Isla and I will wear ours proudly!”

The limited-number of socks, which come in a variety of sizes, were designed by Carter to help with the program. They are available at www.sockittocc.com, at the JR Nation Retail Store on the JRM Campus and at the JR Motorsports Trackside Souvenir trailer. The socks are also available at the Nationwide Children’s gift shop onsite in Columbus, Ohio.

“We are honored and proud to partner with The Dale Jr. Foundation on this important project,” said Niki Shafer, senior vice president, Outreach, Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “Our patients inspire us to join in the fight against this unforgiving disease and raise funds for pediatric cancer research, which is greatly underfunded.” 

ABOUT THE DALE JR FOUNDATION:
The Dale Jr. Foundation is a charity dedicated to giving underprivileged individuals with a focus on youth, the resources to improve their confidence and education, and the opportunity to achieve extraordinary goals. The Dale Jr. Foundation has made a monumental impact in the local community since its beginning, contributing to more than 300 charities nationally and locally, including The Make-A-Wish Foundation, Blessings in a Backpack, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Children’s Hope Alliance, AMI Kids and Healthreach Community Clinic. For more information, visit www.thedalejrfoundation.org.

MEDIA INFORMATION:
Regina Smith
Development Director, TDJF
704.799.4856
regina@dalejr.com

About Nationwide Children's Hospital

Named to the Top 10 Honor Roll on U.S. News & World Report’s 2024-25 list of “Best Children’s Hospitals,” Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of America’s largest not-for-profit free-standing pediatric health care systems providing unique expertise in pediatric population health, behavioral health, genomics and health equity as the next frontiers in pediatric medicine, leading to best outcomes for the health of the whole child. Integrated clinical and research programs, as well as prioritizing quality and safety, are part of what allows Nationwide Children’s to advance its unique model of care. Nationwide Children’s has a staff of more than 16,000 that provides state-of-the-art wellness, preventive and rehabilitative care and diagnostic treatment during more than 1.8 million patient visits annually. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children’s physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded free-standing pediatric research facilities. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org