‘Rides N' Smiles' Event Takes Kids For a Spin Around Homestead Speedway

About 150 kids with chronic illnesses took a break from the sterile medical environment they’ve become used to for loud engines and excitement at Homestead Speedway. It’s the event’s fifth year, and organizer Bill Adam told NBC 6 South Florida that he’s always looking for ways to get back to the community. “With the kids, you look at them and same deal, I wish I could do something for them, and we are,” he said. Child life specialist Bethany Fisackerly said that the patients had a chance to let loose on the racetrack. “We get to see these kids a lot in the hospital and the doctor’s office,” she said. “We see them as they’re first diagnosed and as they go through treatment, which is not fun for anyone. Getting to do these kinds of events is special for us. Getting them here in their element, they’re not patients out here — they’re kids.”