NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Denny Hamlin, who races the FedEx No. 11 car, began donating money from his race winnings to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation when he started racing go-karts as a child. "Finding a cure for CF is important to me because my cousin has it," Hamlin said in a released statement. In April, Hamlin announced that the Denny Hamlin Foundation will donate $150,000 to the Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to help fund research and clinical trials for cystic fibrosis in Richmond. Since 2005, at least 11 people in Central Virginia have died from the disease, which is marked by abnormally thick mucus that clogs the lungs, intestines and pancreas. "The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is excited about the partnership specifically to fund research around being able to expedite finding a cure for CF," says Linda Vines, executive director of the foundation's Virginia chapter.
