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Monday, February 19
Earnhardt laid to rest in private ceremony
ESPN.com news services
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Dale Earnhardt was buried in his hometown Wednesday in a private service, even as his team prepared to return his car to the track.
Earnhardt was laid to rest in Kannapolis with only immediate family members attending, an Earnhardt company employee said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The exact location was not disclosed.
|  | | Martha Graham prepares flowers in the sanctuary of the Calvary Church in Charlotte, N.C., on Wednesday, as the church prepares for Thursday's services for Dale Earnhardt. |
A memorial service for the seven-time Winston Cup champion is planned for at noon ET at Calvary Church in Charlotte and will be televised live on Fox Sports Net and TBS. The service will not be open to the public, but it will be televised.
Earnhardt, 49, was killed Sunday on the last turn of the last lap in the Daytona 500. He slammed into the concrete wall after making contact with Sterling Marlin at the head of a tight pack of five cars fighting for position.
The church, which can seat 5,800 people on three levels, will
open at 10 a.m., and the 30-minute service will begin at noon. The
service is open to immediate family, employees and sponsors of Dale
Earnhardt Inc. and Richard Childress Racing, NASCAR Winston Cup
teams and tracks, and NASCAR.
"Because it is impossible to accommodate the tremendous
outpouring of support from those who followed Dale, we are unable
to open the service to the public," NASCAR said Tuesday in a
statement.
"With that in mind the family has chosen to broadcast the
service live on television, enabling fans across the country to
share in this service for Dale."
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Sending your remembrances
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The Earnhardt family has asked that instead of flowers, donations be sent to the Foundation for the Carolinas, a
nonprofit philanthropic organization. The address is:
Foundation for the Carolinas
In Honor of Dale Earnhardt
P.O. Box 34769
Charlotte, N.C. 28234-4769
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Humpy Wheeler, president of Lowe's Motor Speedway, spent time with the Earnhardt family Monday and spoke to Earnhardt's widow, Teresa, by telephone while she was still in Daytona Beach, Fla.
"She has a tremendous spirit and character, and she's digging deep to hold everyone together," Wheeler said.
Track spokesman Jerry Gappens said the speedway had offered the Earnhardts its facilities and any help the staff could provide.
Earnhardt's body was returned to Huntersville, N.C., on Monday night.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., who finished second in the Daytona 500, said his family appreciated the outpouring of support.
"We'll get through this," he said. "I'm sure he'd want us to keep going, and that's what we're going to do."
Winston Cup teams return to action Saturday with qualifying for Sunday's Dura-Lube 400 at North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham.
Meanwhile, in Earnhardt's birthplace of Kannapolis, the city is planning a memorial service on Sunday at A.L. Brown High School.
"With this service, we hope to celebrate and remember the life of our native son," Mayor Ray Moss told the Charlotte Observer.
And Lowe's Motor Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway said they would donate all proceeds from the sale of Earnhardt merchandise to Speedway Children's Charities, which distributes money to about 40 local groups.
The Associated Press contributed to this story
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