By Mark Gregory
Editorial Director
@Hear_The_Beard
mark@buglenewspapers.com
In a very short amount of time by industry standards, Jesse Iwuji has risen up the ranks of the NASCAR circuit.
From a dream and a decision to follow that dream in January of 2014, he has made his way to the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, where he drives the No. 34 Chevy Silverado for Reaume Brothers Racing.
(Photo Submitted)
Iwuji did not dedicate himself to his dream on a race track, he actually came up with it on a ship – a Naval warship at that.
When he decided, Iwuji had just completed his second deployment and was thinking of what to do with his life after the Navy.
Iwuji entered the Naval Academy from Hebron High School in Carrolton, Texas where he was recruited to play football. A defensive back for the Midshipmen, he earned four varsity letters, playing on teams that combined for a 35-18 record, went to four bowl games and won the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy each of his four seasons.
He graduated from the Naval Academy and became a surface warfare officer.
“After my second deployment, I had a crazy idea that I wanted to be a professional race car driver, so I started to pursue it. I don’t come from a racing family and I didn’t know where to go or what to do, but I just wanted to find a way in there,” he said. “I met a guy at a car show randomly that was racing late model stock cars and he let me test with his team and I was able to find some money here and there and I started to race with his team, I found sponsors and I started my own business to help fund the team.”
Iwuji competed in his first race in April of 2015, raced NASCAR K&N Series all of 2016 and 2017 and the ARCA Series in 2018 and is NASCAR Truck Series this year.
And it gets better from there.
“We just got approval to move up to the NASCAR Xfinity Series and as soon as we get bigger sponsors, we will be able to make that happen,” he said.
As a member of the United States Armed Forces, Iwuji is using his rise through the NASCAR ranks as a way to bring awareness to fallen heroes.
“I am just a regular guy trying to do cool things, but I now have a platform to bring awareness to different organizations and different causes,” he said “When we can use my platform to do that, it is awesome and it is the right thing to do and in the end, when you put good into the universe, the universe puts good back into you. That is what it is all about.”
Iwuji will race this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway in the Friday night truck race and will be honoring Mokena native Aaron Toppen, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2014 at the age of 19.
Iwuji raced last year in the ARCA Series in memory of Toppen and the Our Fallen Hero Foundation started by his mother, Pam.
Last year after the race, Iwuji was able to present Pam with the hood of the car with the foundation logo proudly displayed.
“We met Jesse last year and it was an immediate friendship,” Pam said. “We would be happy to work with him as long as he will have us.”
Iwuji sees no reason to stop his relationship with the Toppen family or the foundation, and he will again show his support in the Friday night truck race.
“We are using the day to honor Aaron and his life and we are bringing awareness of him and our military and what our service members are doing and that they risk their lives every day to insure our freedom. They are out there doing what they are doing for us,” Iwuji said.
Pam said Aaron died doing what he loved and that the military was all he wanted to do, following in the footsteps of his grandfathers.
“He was going to be army and was going to be infantry and there was no way around that,” Pam said. “He enlisted before he left high school and had to wait until he was out.”
After graduation, Aaron went to Fort Benning, Ga. for boot camp.
He celebration prior to his departure gives added significance between Pam and Chicagoland Speedway.
“It was right before he left, he came to Chicagoland Speedway with all of his friends for a race and that was the last time they were all together,” she said.
Aaron was killed by friendly fire after deploying late with his unit in March of 2014.
“In February of 2014, he was supposed to deploy and, unfortunately, my husband died and he was in Mokena burying his dad while his unit got on the airplane,” Pam said. “He caught up with them in March and it was the end of May I was on a fishing trip in Minnesota and I got a text message saying he was chosen for a special mission. He was excited to be chosen but little did I know I would come back from my trip and the next night at 11:59, I got the door knock.”
After Aaron’s death, Pam and her daughters decided to pay it forward and start the Our Fallen Hero Foundation in Aaron’s memory.
“In five short years, we have been able to send 10 scholarships to the Pat Tillman Foundation, support Fisher House, Puppies Behind Bars, the Lincoln-Way Special Rec,” Pam said of some of the charities the foundation has helped. “Our community has been great support and I don’t know how we would do it without our faith, family and friends.
“To be able to pay it forward and remember Aaron’s life and remember all those that made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom gives us great pleasure.”