GO: The Dale Earnhardt Tragedy

The following blog post is from Brother Dylan Kirk, State Senior Councilor of Pennsylvania DeMolay and PMC of Westmoreland Chapter.

In light of PA DeMolay's GO Racing theme, here is the story of the Dale Earnhardt Tragedy. The day was Sunday, February 18^th 2001. The location was Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida. One of the greatest tragedies in NASCAR history occurred on this date. It was the final lap of the Daytona 500, traveling 180 mph, Dale Earnhardt’s car was tapped from behind, turned around and collided head-on with the retaining wall. He never regained consciousness after the crash and had to be cut from his vehicle. At 5:16 PM EST, Dale Earnhardt was officially pronounced dead shortly after arriving at Halifax Medical Center. "This is undoubtedly one of the toughest announcements that I've ever had to personally make," said NASCAR president Mike Helton, "but after the accident in turn four at the Daytona 500, we've lost Dale Earnhardt." "The Intimidator" was one of the greatest drivers to ever live. The 7-time Winston Cup champion had won the Daytona 500 in 1998, in his 20th appearance in the event. He had a total of 76 Winston Cup victories, including 34 on the Daytona track, and was the most active driver on the circuit.

After the crash, there has been some controversy that Earnhardt’s lap belt broke during the wreck due to it not being installed properly so Earnhardt could be more comfortable. It was eventually discovered that had the lap belt been installed properly, it would not have saved Earnhardt’s life. There were several safety improvements made in the sport of stock car racing. In response to the speculation about the broken lap belt in Earnhardt's car, many teams migrated from traditional five to six-point safety harnesses. After the 2001 ARCA EasyCare 100 at Lowe's Motor Speedway resulted in the death of Blaise Alexander, NASCAR mandated the use of head and neck restraints. In addition to head and neck restraints, NASCAR began requiring the use of SAFER barriers at race tracks in which its top touring series compete. The soft walls feature foam and move slightly upon impact, dissipating energy and resulting in fewer forces being exerted on the driver during an impact.

As today is the 17th anniversary of the passing of Dale Earnhardt, please join me in remembering his legacy. Today is also the 60th Daytona 500 race, so on behalf of PA DeMolay, we hope you enjoy the race. 

What's your legacy?

Today’s blog topic randomly came to me this morning as I was making my tuna sandwich for lunch. I know that’s an odd time for a topic to come to mind, but hey, I’ll take it!

I happened to catch a glance of the word “legacy” written on the newspaper sitting nearby and for some reason my mind started thinking about the legacy of DeMolay, what my legacy is, and what everyone thinks of their legacy. Before we dig into that, however, let’s define “legacy.” Dictionary.com gives us the following:

1. Law . a gift of property, especially personal property, as money, by will; a bequest.

2. anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor: the legacy of ancient Rome.

So, what does this mean in the fraternal word? Generally, when people put lots of time, effort, and money into something they like to see a return on their investment. In some cases this return comes in the form of recognition or perhaps and award. That kind of return is quite common in the fraternal world. The return could also be a promotion or the opportunity to go through the chairs and become the leader of the body. But, that is just the tip of the iceberg. Once someone becomes a leader, they are assuredly putting huge effort into the organization, which makes their “legacy” all that more important. Why would you want to be Master Councilor if you weren’t going to do anything? It’s often said that when you get elected to a position of leadership for an organization your primary goal should be to leave the group in better shape than when you took over. This is when the idea of “leaving your mark” on the group takes over. That very notion has everything to do with the idea of legacy.

When I was an Elected State Officer for Pennsylvania DeMolay I wanted to do something to help the DeMolay program not only for that year, but for the future as well. I wanted to do the same thing in every organization which I’m involved. Then, it hit me. We all leave a legacy so profound that most of us never even realize it or take time to ponder its implications. That legacy is found in the people we recruit into the organization. The most important thing you can do for DeMolay is to recruit other young men who you believe will benefit from and be an asset to the program. That’s the longest lasting legacy that you’ll have. Those young men will go recruit their friends and soon your Chapter will grow.

My DeMolay legacy was 5 members. Of those five, two were Officers in our Chapter, and one went on to be Master Councilor. That makes me feel like I made a difference in the history of Erie Chapter. To date, I have sponsored three men into the Masonic Fraternity. One is currently Senior Deacon of my home Lodge and he will be conferring the degrees on his step-son in just a few weeks. Now, that’s a quality experience!

Everyday you are leaving your legacy on DeMolay – is it one of growth, new members, and positive experiences? Or is it one of lost interest, boring activities, and stagnant membership? That choice is up to you.

Frat! ~ “Dad” Anthony