Panthers’ Greg Olsen, NASCAR’s Dale Earnhardt Jr. team up for fundraiser

Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen and NASCAR great Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced a joint fundraising effort Wednesday to benefit the Levine Children’s Hospital, where Olsen’s son, T.J., was born with a congenital heart defect in 2012.

Earnhardt and Olsen are offering fans a chance to win what they’re calling a “Weekend with the 88s,” a play on Earnhardt’s No. 88 car and Olsen’s jersey number.

The raffle winner will meet both athletes and receive tours of Bank of America Stadium and JR Motorsports, as well as a round-trip helicopter ride from Charlotte to the Martinsville (Va.) Speedway for the Truck Series race (including garage passes and grandstand tickets) on Oct. 25.

The next day the winner will return to Charlotte for the Panthers’ game against the Seattle Seahawks, and will receive sideline passes, parking passes and premium seats.

Raffle tickets cost $18.88 and are available at weekendwiththe88s.com through Sept. 30. A maximum of 8,888 tickets will be sold.

Olsen said he met Earnhardt several months ago, and was his guest at the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. He said Earnhardt was receptive to the 88s fundraising theme immediately.

“It’s been awesome,” Olsen said.

This story was originally published July 23, 2014 at 9:58 PM with the headline "Panthers’ Greg Olsen, NASCAR’s Dale Earnhardt Jr. team up for fundraiser."