AdventHealth brings Daytona 500 driver ross chastain to local middle school's stem program

DELTONA, Fla., February 7, 2020 – AdventHealth brought NASCAR driver Ross Chastain to meet over 275 students in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and Greenpower USA (building and racing electric cars) programs at Galaxy Middle School and Heritage Middle School in Deltona.

During the visit, Chastain toured the STEM Lab at Galaxy Middle School with the students and staff, learning about the school’s agricultural, zoology and irrigation systems.

In addition, the Galaxy Middle School and Heritage Middle School Greenpower team, “Rockets Racing,” brought the electric racing car they built in 2018 called the Greenpower Goblin. Chastain got in one of the student-built electric racing cars and raced against two students in a five-lap shootout. In a photo-finish, Chastain came in second place, and the winner was Leira Maynard, an eighth grader at Heritage Middle School.

During his tour of the school, Chastain participated in a Q&A session with the middle school students, answering questions about his family history, his experience as a racecar driver and advice he would give to his younger self.

Chastain also gave the kids an up-close look at the AdventHealth Chevrolet Camaro – which includes watermelon accents in the design. Nicknamed “Melon Man,” Chastain is a multi-generational watermelon farmer from Alva, Florida, and will drive the No. 77 AdventHealth Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE in the DAYTONA 500 on Feb. 16.

“My two passions are racing and agriculture, and to be able to talk to the kids about those types of things was cool,” said Chastain. “These kids are being exposed to a lot of stuff here, such as the irrigation system, and I have such an appreciation for that. These kids are going to be way ahead!”

The opportunity was made possible through AdventHealth’s partnership with the Volusia County School district.

In 2018, AdventHealth and the Volusia County School Board entered into a historic, first-of-its-kind partnership, establishing the AdventHealth Healthy Futures Program of Volusia County Schools. As one of the nation’s largest faith-based healthcare systems, AdventHealth is the largest hospital system in Volusia County with facilities in Daytona Beach, DeLand, Orange City and New Smyrna Beach. Through this partnership, AdventHealth strives to address three key issues impacting local schools: 1) career development in the healthcare industry; 2) student athlete health; and 3) chronic absenteeism.

About AdventHealth
With a sacred mission of Extending the Healing Ministry of Christ, AdventHealth is a connected system of care for every stage of life and health. More than 80,000 skilled and compassionate caregivers in physician practices, hospitals, outpatient clinics, skilled nursing facilities, home health agencies and hospice centers provide individualized, wholistic care. A shared vision, common values, focus on whole-person health and commitment to making communities healthier unify the system's nearly 50 hospital campuses and hundreds of care sites in diverse markets throughout almost a dozen states. For more information about AdventHealth, visit AdventHealth.com, or Facebook.com/AdventHealth.

Photo Caption:
AdventHealth brought NASCAR driver Ross Chastain to meet the kids in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and Greenpower USA (building and racing electric cars) programs at Galaxy Middle School and Heritage Middle School in Deltona. Chastain also gave the kids an up-close look at the AdventHealth Chevrolet Camaro – which includes watermelon accents in the design. Nicknamed “Melon Man,” Chastain is a multi-generational watermelon farmer from Alva, Florida, and will drive the No. 77 AdventHealth Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE in the DAYTONA 500 on Feb. 16 and the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina in May.