INDIANAPOLIS — The Riley Children's Foundation honored a Riley kid with a VIP experience at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday.
Callista Dillion, 16, was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease when she was in kindergarten and will celebrate one year since her last chemotherapy session in July.
Dillion has experience in the world of racing, having previously raced quarter midgets, but said she wasn't very familiar with IndyCar. That's where Ed Carpenter comes in.
Carpenter gave Dillion and her family a behind-the-scenes look at how his team is getting ready for Sunday's Indianapolis 500, as well as a look at his car, which carries a Riley Children's Foundation logo.
"Meeting a single driver and being able to talk to him like I'm talking to Ed is so cool, and I will never forget this moment," Dillion said.
Dillion said she hopes to one day have a marketing job in motorsports.
"Being able to integrate what we do here and kind of host them and raise awareness and money, for not only the hospital but their foundation, is a lot of fun and just getting to meet really cool people, like Callista who is a racer and is doing really cool things and had her own challenges," Carpenter said.