Broken Arrow Family Creates Racing Foundation To Remember Son

At the Tulsa Shootout, people come together to enjoy the exhilarating speed and the pursuit of first prize. But for the Crawford family, this race is about more than the competition--it's about keeping the legacy of their number 55 alive.

Friday, December 29th 2023, 5:37 pm

By: Ryan Gillin

A Broken Arrow family is remembering their son more than a decade after his death.

He was shot and killed by his grandfather, but his family is focused on remembering the person he was.

At the Tulsa Shootout, people come together to enjoy the exhilarating speed and the pursuit of first prize.

But for the Crawford family, this race is about more than the competition--it's about keeping the legacy of their number 55 alive.

"Donnie Ray was a competitor,” Kaylen Carpenter, Donnie Ray Crawford’s cousin, said. “That was his personality. He wanted to be the best, do the best. If he wanted to do something, he was going to do it the best way he could. So, whether that was racing or us fishing in a pond, whether it was an Easter Egg hunt, school. He was going to do the best possible job he absolutely could.”

Crawford was a big name in the racing circuit.

To remember him, his family created a foundation, the Donnie Ray Crawford Legacy Foundation, to give back to people in the racing community.

"We are able to help people with their education, we are able to help people with their missions, help drivers that get hurt,” Carpenter said.

Jodie Crawford, his mother, said they've helped hundreds of students and raised more than $400,000 to help them pay for their degree.

"We just hope we can help other individuals pursue their dreams, and I know that Donnie Ray would be very, very proud of how the community supports this foundation,” Crawford said.

The whole family misses his lively spirit and jokes, but they feel uplifted by carrying on his legacy and remembering the way he lived.

"He is not just gone; his spirit still lives on and is still able to help so many other people during school times when they are trying to continue their education and be better people and be the best at what they are going to be,” Carpenter said.

Turning their grief into something good to help those around them.

If you are interested in learning more about the foundation, click here.