A child from the Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis
signs a racecar used at this year’s Winged
Warrior Performance Challenge & Car Show. The
event raises money for the children’s hospital. |
Kevin Butterfield, D.C., Davenport ’91,
and his wife, Greta, started a charity
tradition years ago with a toy drive in
their Connersville, Ind., office for children
hospitalized at Riley Hospital for
Children, in Indianapolis. That initial
effort has grown into a full-blown annual
charity event, the Winged Warrior
Performance Challenge & Car Show, an
automotive performance shootout, car
show and spectator event. Winged
Warrior III took place May 12, 2007,
at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis
and raised $15,288 for Riley Hospital
for Children.
Competitors for the Winged Warrior
performance challenge are organized into
two teams—Team Import and Team
USA—and come from varied
backgrounds with many different
types of cars, from race
prepped to stock. There were
more than 450 entrants for the
120 spots available to race at
this year’s event, Dr. Butterfield
said, and participants included
many D.C.s as well as M.D.s,
“so it’s a true M.D./D.C. battle
for a great cause.”
Dr. Butterfield adds, “I put on my car’s
bumper ‘Dr. Butterfield’s Honorary Co-
Pilots’ and the kids sign the car and wish
us luck. The event is for those kids, and if
they are too sick to come and watch, they
can be part of the event by signing and
‘blessing’ the car. Parents, siblings and
grandparents also sign the car in memory
of a child who has passed away, which is
very humbling.”
Each year, Winged Warrior draws an
average of 5,000 spectators. For more
information on the event, go to
www.wingedwarrior.net.