By: Joe Morrison Racing
READING, PA (September 9, 2024) — NHRA professional driver Joe Morrison is dedicating his racing program to something bigger than win lights and reaction times. The veteran Top Fuel racer turned Funny Car racer is on a personal mission to help other people have more time with their loved ones. Morrison lost his father to COPD in 2016 and he has joined forces with a number of incredible organizations to bring the opportunity for early detection and treatment to the race track. Joining Morrison at the NHRA Reading Nationals, September 13-15, 2024, will be three instrumental companies and organizations: Right2Breathe, the Temple Lung Center and Chiesi USA. All three groups will have a specific mission at Maple Grove Raceway and Morrison will be the ambassador promoting their initiatives.
“I love racing at Maple Grove Raceway. I got my first wins here at an event called ‘Geezers at the Grove’ in my nostalgia altered in 2009. It’s my home track, and I always have a ton of friends and family around,” said Morrison, who made his Funny Car debut at the Norwalk Nationals in June of this season. “The fans here are some of the best anywhere. Every year, people who we have ‘Put Their Lungs on the Dyno’ at past events come by to tell us how their lives have improved. To know that we are making a positive impact in the lives of fans and racers is both humbling and gratifying.”
For Morrison, partnering with Right2Breathe has been a life-changing experience for him and for NHRA fans. One ongoing example of this partnership is the free onsite lung health evaluations Right2Breathe has provided fans giving them the chance to ‘Put Their Lungs on the Dyno.” As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Right2 Breathe is celebrating their 10-year anniversary in 2024, and they have provided lung screenings and lung health education at the Reading NHRA Nationals five times since 2017. Their mission is to provide free lung screening for people at risk for lung disease as well as provide education and support for people already living with lung disease.
“I’m also excited to be partnered with such amazing organizations as the Temple Lung Center and Chiesi USA,” said Morrison, who is bringing Temple Lung Center back to Maple Grove and introducing Chiesi to the sport. “Both are committed to putting patients’ needs first and are leading the way in improving peoples’ lives and health. The opportunity to make a life changing impact on NHRA fans is incredible and I am thrilled to be able to highlight these programs.”
Joining Right2Breathe at Maple Grove Raceway will be medical professionals from the Temple Lung Center who will provide free lung screenings, lung health education, and promote their “Temple Healthy Chest Initiative” to help provide early diagnosis of lung disease to save lives.
“The Temple Healthy Chest Initiative is dedicated to bringing essential chest health screenings and personalized care directly to the community,” said Melissa Liverpool, BSN, RN
Supervisor, Nurse Navigator, Temple Healthy Chest Initiative. “We’re excited to partner with Right2Breathe at Maple Grove Raceway, allowing us to bring these vital services directly to NHRA fans, where early detection can truly make a difference.”
One of the key supporters of this event is Chiesi USA through its US respiratory business unit, AIR. Chiesi is a global, privately owned, biopharmaceutical company with nearly 90 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Chiesi is committed to being a force for good and improving care for patients, including people living with respiratory diseases such as asthma and COPD. The company’s primary focus is on improving quality of life for patients, their families, their communities, and society through innovating new medicines and returning value to the communities in which it operates.
“At Chiesi USA, we recognize achieving better health outcomes begins with raising awareness in the communities where patients are. We must meet patients in the community alongside organizations like Right2Breathe to help raise awareness about lung health and promote access to care for all,” said Richard Smith, Vice President and Business Unit Head, US AIR, Chiesi USA. “Today will be a success if our efforts help even one person in need to connect with respiratory care resources that could help him or her on their journey.”
Morrison, from Flemington, New Jersey, will make his second professional start in the ultra-competitive NHRA Nitro Funny Car division, driving for legendary Funny Car driver, owner, and tuner Paul Smith at Maple Grove Raceway, September 13-15, 2024. In June he qualified No. 16 and lost to No. 1 qualifier Austin Prock at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. Morrison will be competing at Maple Grove thanks to the support of PennGrade 1® High Performance Oils, MarSchanMotorsports.com (Mar-Schan Motorsports), and Dawn D’Agostino.
