OSWEGO, NY – Once again this year the Green & Seifter CPA firm in Syracuse is teaming up with the Oswego Speedway to help make a wish come true for a Central New York youngster.
Saturday night, June 30, will be the special night for the 15-year-old.
He will be given a guided tour of the pit area when the Supermodified and Small Block Supermodified teams are arriving, then go to the VIP Tower where he and his family will be hosted by Green & Seifter CPAs.
The highlight of the day will be when he takes a ride in the Oswego Speedway 2-seat Supermodified during the intermission.
Keith Gilliam, who does most of the driving for the 2-seat Supermodified, missed last year’s event because he was out of town, so Dave Trytek did the driving.
This year, Keith will be behind the wheel.
“I feel I missed something special last year,” said Gilliam. “I want to be a part of it this year.”
Last year when the 2-seat Supermodified returned to the infield, it was greeted by the Oswego Speedway safety crew which gave the youngster a big round of applause.
“We were just so moved by the whole thing,” said Paul Conzone of the safety crew. “It was just kind of a natural thing for us to do.”
The ride given last year was so emotional for Kathy Weeks, owner of Top Stitch, that she said she would do anything she could for the next Make A Wish youngster.
As a result she is putting in the gift bag a 2-seat Supermodified Team golf shirt.
And she is not alone.
Over the past couple of weeks Lisa Sova, Oswego Speedway coordinator for the Kids on Track program, and a Senior Accountant at Green & Seifter, has been working with all of the race teams to fill a gift bag for the teenager.
“We will be giving him a gift bag filled with sponsor goodies as we do with all of our 2-seat Supermodified riders,” said Sova. “But we want to make this gift bag extra special so we are reaching out to all race teams to put something in the gift bag.”
So far items include everything from race team hero cards to hats and T-shirts.
On June 30 Sova will be going through the pits starting at 3 p.m. to visit all of the race teams to gather more items for the gift bag.
Sova said, “The first race person to offer something for the gift bag was Terry Strong of the Plum Crazy Racing 99 Supermodified team. She offered us a team hat, and said we will have a team T-shirt as well if they arrive in time.”
Terry, who is a cancer survivor herself, said, “I know how important this program is, and I know how important the support of family and friends is. We just wanted to do something to help.”
As well as the race teams, any business that would like to contribute an item for the Make A Wish gift bag may do so by dropping it off at the Oswego Speedway office on East Albany Street in Oswego, or call the office at (315) 342-0646 and we will do our best to pick it up in time to get it into the gift bag.
The teenager’s night will be capped off with the running of the Grand Prix 75 lap Supermodified feature, a 35 lap Small Block Supermodified feature, and a gigantic fireworks display.
In addition to the ride, Sova is coordinating a fundraising effort for Make A Wish at the Oswego Speedway.
For the past several weeks Make A Wish race cards, with a picture of the 2-seat Supermodified, have been available at the track.
For the donation of at least $1, a person gets a card and can put his/her favorite driver’s name and number on the card. The cards are then put on display at the track. A table will be set up in the concession stand area where these cards will be available before the start of racing action Saturday night.
Dave Canale of Canale Insurance, title sponsor of the 2-seat Supermodified, made a $150 donation to support his cousin, Jon Tesoriero, who is leading the standings for SBS Rookie of the Year.
Sova said, “That’s the largest single donation we have gotten; but every dollar is important.”
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