Dover International Speedway serves as community focal point

Dover International Speedway’s community outreach during the coronavirus pandemic continued with recent events assisting central Delaware families and first responders.

For the third time in three months, the speedway partnered with the Food Bank of Delaware and the Delaware Department of Transportation to host a food distribution event May 20.

The Monster Mile hosted similar events March 20 and April 22, with track employees volunteering alongside food bank personnel providing foodstuffs such as milk, vegetables and cereal to families in need. In total, Dover food distribution events have assisted more than 5,800 area households this year.

Dover International Speedway also partnered with the Delaware Emergency Management Agency May 20 to host a drive-thru COVID-19 testing location exclusively for first responders at the speedway’s fan care center.

During Dover’s NASCAR weekends, as well as during the Firefly Music Festival, the fan care center, behind the Monster Mile’s front-stretch grandstands, is utilized for guests feeling ill or suffering medical problems. The EMA drive-thru testing event serviced 72 Delaware first responders who daily serve on the front lines of the COVID-19 fight.

"For years, Dover International Speedway has been a great partner,” said A.J. Schall Jr., Delaware Emergency Management Agency director. “During this COVID-19 crisis, while trying to manage a changing workload, they remained committed to the state and its citizens by supporting food bank missions as well as testing sites. These types of partnerships are the foundation upon which our communities can begin to recover.”

Since March, Dover’s fan care center has also been a remote headquarters for Bayhealth Medical Center’s COVID-19 testing. Bayhealth, central Delaware’s largest healthcare system, has utilized the center 17 times as a drive-thru testing location.

“The staff and volunteers with the Food Bank of Delaware, Bayhealth and DelDOT deserve so much credit for what they are doing, and I consider myself fortunate to be a small part of that and enjoy helping in any way I can,” said Jim Hosfelt, director of public safety and track operations at Dover International Speedway. Hosfelt has led the organization efforts for the track-based COVID-19 relief activities.

“It’s not only [Dover International Speedway] employees who volunteer, but also their family members, husbands, wives and children who come out. That’s when you know you are part of a special group – when they are willing to share their families with the rest of us while working toward a common goal.”

Dover International Speedway has also been a distribution site for personal protective equipment during the pandemic. The equipment includes gloves, helmets, clothing and goggles.