Klaussner's Jeff Davis raises $136,000 for kids' charity
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, March 6, 2005
Asheboro, N.C. — Klaussner Furniture's Jeff Davis completed his first marathon a few weeks ago and also accomplished something even bigger, raising $136,000 for a local camp for chronically ill children.
After Davis committed to running in the Jan. 31 Las Vegas Marathon, he set a goal of raising $1,000 for every mile of the 26.2-mile race for his friend Michael Waltrip's Operation Marathon.
Waltrip, a NASCAR driver, and his wife, Buffy, created Operation Marathon to raise $1 million for the Victory Junction Camp in Randleman, N.C., which offers a camping experience for chronically ill children. NASCAR driver Kyle Petty and his wife, Patty, founded the camp in memory of their son Adam, who died in a racing accident in 2000.
Davis, Klaussner's vice president of merchandising, and his wife, Kim, sent e-mails, made calls and contacted friends and colleagues at Klaussner. The fundraising effort snowballed with donations topping $136,000 and still coming in.
Davis, 34, finished the marathon in 4:04:15 in winds of 25 to 30 mph, and later said he also was figuratively blown away by the generosity of donors.
"I just cannot believe the tremendous response we have gotten from this," he said. "What started as a dream by Michael has become a reality as he has reached his goal of raising $1 million to help with the operating costs of the camp and to insure that the kids can attend the camp for free."
