Celebrating Mother's Day

The story of how Nick Sanchez became a race car driver starts with his mom, Shanie Sanchez, and a Google search. From the time Nick was a small child, he wanted to drive anything with four wheels and an engine: the family's John Deere, ATV, golf cart, etc. So, as Nick tells it, Shanie got on Google and searched, “How to become a race car driver?” because that’s just who she is. If her son, or daughters, want to do something, Shainie is going to figure out a way.

When go-karting popped up among the search results, Shanie found Nick’s first local go-kart team. He was 12 years old.

The rest is history. Nick is now 21 years old and driving the No. 2 Gainbridge Chevrolet for Rev Racing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with hopes of one day driving for the top circuit.

When Nick won the pole to open the season at Daytona International Speedway, Shanie was right there on the grid jumping up and down and overjoyed to see her son perform at such an iconic venue.

“He is truly just an amazing person,” said Shanie. “He is the best son anyone can ask for and an amazing brother, grandson, and friend. He is one of those people that you want to be around. Never in my wildest dreams could I have ever imagined Nick racing in NASCAR’s National Series and only a step away from the highest level. Someone pinch me.”

Moments like those are a testament to the hard work Nick and Shanie have put into chasing this dream. When Shanie learned about Rev Racing six years ago, she arranged everything for Nick, down to making sure his application video was flawless. 

“A lot of this is thanks to her and her drive and determination to keep finding opportunities for me,” said Nick. “She found ways to advance my career when I didn’t really know what my next step was.”

This Mother’s Day, Gainbridge and Group 1001 are proud to spotlight Shanie and moms of employees at Group 1001. Just like Shanie, Melissa Brodsky’s mom helped her find a profession she would love. Melissa is an Associate Director of Digital Copywriting at Group 1001. Her mom turned a hobby, antique collecting, into a successful business and urged Melissa in college while she was fumbling through major after major to find a hobby and make it something more. Melissa always loved to write and turned that into a career thanks to her mom.

“My mom was full of great advice,” said Melissa. “She would always tell me to ask, the worst thing that can happen is you’ll be told no. Those words have made me pretty fearless because I’m not afraid of a no. I learned to use my voice.”

Sianna Ramdial also has her mom to thank. Sianna is an Executive Program Manager at Group 1001 working very closely with the top executives at the company. Sianna watched her mom be a “relentless leader” growing up and that instilled the trait she needed to succeed.

“She dreams big, believes in herself, and never gives up,” explained Sianna about her mom. “Her hard work and faith have led her to overcome the impossible, and her compassion for others is unmatched. Like my mother, I strive to be a positive role model for my child so he can feel as confident and loved as I felt growing up!”

Moms are not only great at inspiring us to excel in our careers, but also have a knack for offering sound advice. Megan Weaver, an Associate Director of Agency Administration at Group 1001, learned sound financial advice from her mom, a now retired CPA and financial advisor, that she keeps close to this day.

“One of her favorite sayings has always been, the poor stay poor because they live like they are rich and the rich stay rich because they live like they are poor. Because of my mother’s incredible and loving influence, our entire family strives each and every day to live by her.”

Before every race, Shanie comes up to Nick and gives him four pieces of motherly advice.

1. Don’t wreck

2. Don’t go fast

3. Hope you do good

4. Hope you’re safe

But it’s the advice away from the track that has meant most to Nick and has fueled his success.

“She would always tell me to keep knocking on doors to find opportunities and luckily I got to watch her do that and just instill those same practices in me,” explained Nick. “She’s a go-getter and doesn’t wait for anyone to do anything and I think that approach in racing is very important.”

As a proud mom, there is always one thing Shanie does before every race: make sure her phone is charged so if Nick wins big and drives into victory lane, she can take lots of photos and videos.

And because of his mother, it won’t be long before Nick is in the winner’s circle in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and Shanie is beaming with pride snapping away on her cell phone.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there!