Creed Serving As A Champion In The Fight Against Cancer

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Sheldon Creed is kicking off his new NASCAR Xfinity Series chapter with Joe Gibbs Racing with a worthwhile cause aboard his No. 18 Toyota GR Supra.

Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, in partnership with Leukemia Dare to Dream and the Team Parker initiative, is adorning Creed’s racecar for the first two races of the Xfinity Series season at Daytona (Fla.) Int’l Speedway and Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway.

Founded in 2005, the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization with a mission to improve the quality of life for children with pediatric brain tumors and other childhood cancers while raising awareness for said diseases.

It’s a charitable cause that Creed has worked with for much of his career, with the 26-year-old native of Alpine, Calif., serving as a champion in the fight against pediatric cancer from within the garage.

"It means a lot to me to run the Friends of Jaclyn scheme these first two weekends of the season and kick off our association with Joe Gibbs Racing in such a big way,” Creed told Motorsports Hotspot Friday at Daytona Int’l Speedway. “I’ve been lucky enough to be involved with them for some time now, and I’ve gotten to witness firsthand the differences they make in children’s lives, as well as their families. It's always been something that I took a lot of pride in advocating for, so to do it on a scale of this magnitude is really special.

“Friends of Jaclyn is truly a great cause and I’m honored to help share it with the world,” Creed added. “Hopefully, we can run well this weekend and bring awareness to FOJ as much as possible.”

While Friends of Jaclyn has been a primary sponsor in the past on NASCAR’s national stage, appearing in four NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races with Kaden Honeycutt in 2022, this will be the nonprofit’s first primary sponsorship at the Xfinity Series level and its first time as a primary partner of Creed in NASCAR.

“For everyone who is a part of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, this is a monumental moment. We are beyond excited to have the opportunity to partner with Sheldon Creed and Joe Gibbs Racing to support families affected by pediatric cancer,” said Denis Murphy, founder of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation. “Coach Gibbs’ iconic No. 18 is not only an extraordinary Xfinity Series car, but a vehicle that we hope will help to change the lives of children battling the beast we call cancer.”

The story of Friends of Jaclyn dates back to 2004, when nine-year-old Jaclyn Murphy was diagnosed with a malignant medulloblastoma brain tumor. Through a sequence of life events, Jaclyn became connected to – and later “adopted” by – the Northwestern University women’s lacrosse team as an honorary team member.

She served as an inspiration to those lacrosse players, with the 2005 Northwestern women going undefeated en route to the school’s first of five straight NCAA national championships. It was a run that marked the Evanston, Ill., university’s first team national titles in any sport since 1941.

That period also sparked the idea for what would become the present-day FOJ Foundation. While she was being treated at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, she would often get text messages from members of the Northwestern women’s lacrosse squad.

Asked by a fellow young cancer patient who she was talking with one day, Jaclyn’s response of, “My friends,” planted the seeds for a noble cause to be founded by her family later in 2005.

Since its inception, Friends of Jaclyn has assisted more than 1,000 families whose children are affected by brain tumors or other forms of childhood cancer. Jaclyn Murphy not only survived her tumor; she went on to graduate from Marist College in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in communications.

In partnership with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Dare to Dream Project, as well as San Diego, Calif.-based Team Parker 4 Life, Friends of Jaclyn is bringing a trifecta of cancer awareness initiatives to the World Center of Racing to chase both a Daytona trophy and a future cure for cancer.

“It’s been pretty cool that we could take the mission of FOJ and elevate it even higher this year, with the tie-ins to both Dare to Dream and Team Parker. They are both helping in the fight against pediatric cancer in their own ways, and to bring them all together is a really nice way to highlight the overall goal that all three groups are working toward,” Creed noted.

“It takes a community to make true differences, and I love that we were able to join forces to raise awareness for a greater goal this weekend, and hopefully in the future as well.”

Creed’s debut with Joe Gibbs Racing comes after two years in the Xfinity Series with Richard Childress Racing that produced everything but a victory and a Championship 4 appearance.

In 70 career Xfinity Series starts, Creed owns 11 top-five and 29 top-10 finishes, as well as a pole position earned last June at Portland (Ore.) Int’l Raceway.

The 2020 Craftsman Truck Series champion hopes that this year can be the time he’s able to break through and add a second NASCAR title to his growing resume in the sport.

“I’m excited to get out there with my team. It’s been a busy offseason with a lot of hard work put into it, so to finally see everything come together is something I’ve been looking forward to,” tipped Creed of joining Joe Gibbs Racing. “Hopefully, our hard work pays off and we can go out there and prove ourselves early on.”

Alongside new crew chief Sam McAulay, Creed joins an organization that boasts four Xfinity Series driver’s championships and six owner’s championships, hoping to add his name to the historic legacy of the team led by three-time Super Bowl winning-coach and NASCAR Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs.

That starts Monday in the rain-postponed, season-opening United Rentals 300 at Daytona, where Creed started and finished second after leading 21 laps in the most recent Xfinity Series race held at the 2.5-mile superspeedway last August.

“It’s a confidence boost for sure,” said Creed of his runner-up finish at the World Center of Racing last year. “I was proud of how I ran (at Daytona) last summer, and I think I learned a lot from that race in general. In terms of how I approach this weekend, I just plan on taking the lessons from past years and applying them where I can.

“The goal is to learn as much as possible when I get out there this weekend, along with spreading the word about cancer awareness and how to support those affected to as many people as possible along the way.”

For more information on the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation and how to support the nonprofit organization, visit friendsofjaclyn.org/volunteer-opportunities/.

To learn more about the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Dare to Dream Project, visit lls.org/dare-to-dream, and for additional details on Team Parker 4 Life, head to teamparker4life.org.

The rescheduled United Rentals 300 goes green Monday at 11 a.m. ET, with race coverage airing on FS1, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90. Creed starts 14th in the race.