A NASCAR Samaritan
Posted by Shannon on April 2, 2007
Yesterday, four of us headed north to Virginia, for the Goody’s Cool Orange 500 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Martinsville Speedway. The same group, for the most part, went to the race last year and for the most part it was an interesting day, filled with great racing, a side-by-side finish, and my favorite driver (Kevin Harvick) having a day worthy of two cold ones after the race.
But this blog has nothing to do with the race, but the generosity of one unknown fan.
When we arrived at the parking lot, I placed my race ticket in my back right pocket. A good place, I thought, to store the ticket as we walked up and down the trailers looking at the souvenirs. Every now and then, I would check and make sure that the ticket was still there, safe and secure in it’s pocket home.
It remained there after the long trip to the bathroom. It remained there after the trip to the trailers and even walking around some of the show cars and Air Force area.
As soon as we make the final stretch towards the entrance, something was missing. My ticket was no longer in my back pocket. I feared the worst, hoping for the best, and I headed to look for it, letting out a “I lost my ticket” to the foursome. We were looking for it if we were looking for one of my lost golf balls in the woods of your favorite local golf course. Sadly, we were having the same luck … couldn’t find anything.
I had just spent a good bit of money on this ticket and now, in an instant, it was gone.
Then, a gentleman came to me and said, “Did you lose your ticket?” as he held out my missing ticket, muddied, damaged, but still the same ticket I had in my pocket just minutes ago. I said yes, thanked him, and gave him the biggest NASCAR bear hug he ever experienced.
Now, this gentleman could have found the ticket, sold it, and made a nice profit for himself. Instead, he did the right thing. I am very blessed. Praise God for good people who do the right thing and help out a guy trying to find his lost ticket.
