NAPA NASCAR fundraiser, a winning day for all

MILLERTON — Mike Taylor, owner of the NAPA Auto Parts store on Route 22, hosted an event that raised $1,411 for the Millerton Food Pantry.Representatives from the NAPA corporate office in Albany came Friday, May 11, as did the NAPA NASCAR Sprint Cup show car.Ken Priestly, field marketing manager for KS Motorsports, answered questions about the car.“The car is put on the road by Michael Waltrip racing on behalf of the distribution center in Albany and we’re here all the way from North Carolina to support Mike and his love of this community,” Priestly said.NAPA Albany’s Sales Manager Scott Murphy said, “We usually bring the car out for sales events, but Mike was so passionate to do a fundraiser and give back to the community that we’re happy to be here. NAPA is here in full force to support Mike Taylor. He is 100 percent all about the community and is not just a great asset to us here at NAPA, but to Millerton as well,” Murphy said.The event included the show car, food cooked by Millerton’s own NASCAR Dave MacMillan (of Sunday in the Country Food Drive fame) and a raffle for tickets to a NASCAR race.Taylor chose to support the Millerton food bank after having gone through some tough times himself.“I bought the business two years ago but before that I had been laid off from a Chrysler dealership due to the economy. I experienced the stress and difficulties. I felt how much it means to have support in a time of need. When I heard about the Millerton food pantry I wanted to put together a fun day for the community to come out and support this important organization that many depend on,” he said.Taylor was modest in saying, “I don’t know how much of a difference I can make, but maybe all of us together could do some good.”He stressed the important role his staff played in organizing and helping with the event.“I really couldn’t have done this today without their help. The guys in the shop are just a great group of individuals that I’m lucky to have,” he said.Taylor was thankful for the rest of his supporters.“There’s too many to name, but I want to thank everyone who was involved. The participants, sponsors and, of course, our customers,” he said. “The only reason we’re here is because of your continued business and support. Without the support of our customers we couldn’t do an event like this, we wouldn’t even be here.”