HOH 2008CONCORD, N.C. – The final three charities to be featured in the Jimmie Johnson Foundation Helmet of Hope initiative have been selected. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Classroom Central, and CaringBridge will each have logos on the reigning Sprint Cup Champion’s helmet during the Fontana, Calif. race weekend.

In conjunction with the Jimmie Johnson Foundation’s second-annual Golf Tournament in San Diego, California, race fans and media members nationwide were given the opportunity to participate in the Helmet of Hope initiative, allowing them the chance to nominate charities which they feel should be featured on the helmet. Johnson drew two charities each race weekend through last Sunday’s event at Michigan International Speedway, collecting a total of 12 winning organizations.

Claire B. Lang, whose name was selected two races ago, had her XM Radio listeners chose her charity throughout the week. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital was the winner. Based in Memphis, Tenn., the mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of its founder, Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family’s ability to pay. For more information, visit www.stjude.org

MRN Radio’s Winton Kelley selected Classroom Central to decorate Johnson’s helmet. Focusing on education, Classroom Central is a free store for teachers who work in low-income schools in the Charlotte, N.C. region. Through its mission of equipping students to effectively learn by collecting and distributing free school supplies, Classroom Central served more than 80,000 students during the 2007-2008 academic year. Kelley says, “Classroom Central levels the academic playing field for students in the Charlotte region. Many of these students show up to the first day of school empty handed but because of Classroom Central, their teachers are able to provide them with all the basic materials for learning.” For more information on this charity, visit www.classroomcentral.org.

The final fan-winning charity is CaringBridge, nominated by Susan Ingle of Indianapolis. CaringBridge is a nonprofit charitable organization providing the first, largest and most widely-used free online service to connect family and friends facing a serious health condition, treatment and recovery. A coworker of Ingle has a grandson that was recently diagnosed with a brain tumor, traveling from Indianapolis to Phoenix for life-saving surgery. “Michael’s family posted regular updates so everyone stayed informed, without them having to take time away from Michael making tons of phone calls,” Ingle said. For more information, visit www.caringbridge.org.

Due to the demand for Jimmie’s Helmet of Hope, the Jimmie Johnson Foundation will be auctioning off the helmet on its eBay site. Visit www.ebay.com/jimmiejohnsonfoundation for more information or to place your bid.

For more information on the Helmet of Hope initiative, please contact Mary Barr, Jimmie Johnson Foundation, mbarr@jimmiejohnsonfoundation.org or 704.453.2897.