The paint scheme on Joe Nemechek’s #13 Ginn Racing Chevy for this weekend’s Pepsi 400 Nextel Cup race at Daytona International Speedway will honor the nine Charleston, S.C. firefighters who perished in a warehouse blaze on June 18. The names and ages of the nine fallen firefighters are listed on the decklid of Nemechek’s Chevrolet while the logo of the Charleston S.C. Fire Department is showcased on each side of the car.

“Being a South Carolina native I wanted to let the families of the fallen victims and the Charleston community know that our race team shares in the mourning of these great American heroes,” said team owner Bobby Ginn.”The tragedy personally moved me.” Ginn is a former resident of Charleston and the Ginn Company has several communities in development in the area along with sponsoring an LPGA tournament.

The names and ages of the nine fallen firefighters are as follows:

Capt. William “Billy” Hutchinson, 48
Capt. Mike Benke, 48
Capt. Louis Mulkey, 34
Engineer Mark Kelsey, 40
Engineer Bradford “Brad” Baity, 37
Assistant engineer Michael French, 27
Firefighter James “Earl” Drayton, 56
Firefighter Brandon Thompson, 27
Firefighter Melvin Champaign, 46

Race fans wishing to make a donation to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation can go the organization’s website — www.firehero.org.

[Ginn PR]

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