As one of the youngest competitors on the Junior Dragster Circuit, Matt Murphy has enough love, praise and attention to go around. And, indeed, he spread some of it about on Saturday to other kids whose fortunes for now aren’t as bright as Murphy’s.

The Matt Murphy Motor Sports Team, which includes Matt’s parents and maternal grandparents, teamed with Union Baptist Church Youth Ministry Saturday to host a luncheon for the children of Project HOPE, a program of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County School System that aids homeless students and their parents.

Close to two dozen youngsters and their parents entered a meeting room at Union Baptist that was decked in purple, gold and black – the signature colors of Matt Murphy Motor Sports. The menu – which included hot pizza, popcorn and freshly-spun cotton candy – was right up the kids’ alley. For more than two hours, the special guests ate, laughed and relished the moment.

Project HOPE’s Jerrilyn Ingram said occasions like Saturday’s luncheon are too few and far between for the families and especially the children.

“It’s wonderful for them to know that someone cares about what they are going through,” she said.

Matt Murphy is only eight but has already jammed quite a bit into those few years. By the time he sat behind the wheel of a race car at age six, he had already earned trophies in basketball, tee-ball and flag football. He is one of the youngest racers on the Junior Dragster circuit, often vying for titles with kids in their teens.

You can say that racing is in his blood. His maternal grandfather, Clarence “Mr. C.” Millner, is a regional legend, thanks to his years as a stock car racer. Mr. C, a member of Union Baptist, looked on proudly as his grandson warmly greeted and interacted with his young guests on Saturday.

Like his love of competition, community service has become a passion of Matt’s. After forgoing gifts for himself so that they could go to homeless children, Matt decided to start a more structured effort to help those in need. He has lofty goals for Project SHARE (Sacrificing Hands Are Real Examples).

“

I don’t want homeless to be a word anymore,” he said matter-of-factly.

Project SHARE plans to continue to perform outreach efforts here in Winston-Salem and Charlotte, where Matt lives with his parents, John and LaShanda Murphy. Providing inspiration is a major thrust of the project. Matt took a few minutes to talk to the young people at the luncheon. After beginning his remarks behind a podium that he barely cleared, he grabbed the microphone from the holder and began to walk through the crowd asking the youngsters what they want to be when they grow up.

“A policeman,” one kid said. “A super-hero!” shouted another. Whatever the answer was, Matt responded with an enthusiastic, “That’s totally awesome!”

The pint-sized drag racer also shared his own ambitions.

“I want to be President of the United States,” said Matt, who wore a Barack Obama campaign button on his blue jean, button-down shirt.

The event ended with Matt leading the kids outside to give them an up close and personal look at his brightly-colored race car, which can reach speeds of up to 100 miles per hour. The young crowd was spellbound as Matt’s dad lifted him into the driver’s seat and the young racer began to explain the various gauges and doodads inside.

Back inside the church, each child was given a large bag filled with toys, books and games to take with them. Ingram was especially happy about that gesture.

“These things (in the bags) belong to them,” she said. “That is so important because when you have children in this type of situation, they have nothing that is theirs.”

These days, Project HOPE needs all the help that it can get. Tough economic times have left many local families without a place to call home. As a result, Project HOPE’s client list has doubled in the last year, to nearly 150.

“We are feeling the foreclosures; we are feeling the job losses; we are feeling the bad economy. We are busy all day, everyday,” said Ingram.

Even at the naive, optimistic age of eight, Matt knows that his goodwill alone won’t change the fate of his luncheon guests overnight. But he has been taught that with effort comes positive change.

“My mom tells me that if you work hard, you can do anything,” he said with a grin.

To learn more about Matt, go to www.mattmurphymotorsports.com, For more information about Project HOPE, call 336-771-4732.