"Trying to help is a way to honor her": Danica Patrick once turned the heartbreak from her grandmother's death into a powerful cause 

During her switch from the IndyCar to the NASCAR Cup Series in 2012, Danica Patrick was one of the most popular female athletes in the United States of America. Given her soaring popularity back in the day, she decided to use it for a noble cause and got herself involved in working for COPD — Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Patrick, who was born on March 25, 1982, in Beloit, Wisconsin, lost her grandmother to COPD. In order to honor her death, she got involved in working for the cause using her fame. Danica Patrick is the celebrity spokesperson for DRIVE4COPD, an awareness programme for the disease. She encourages people to visit DRIVE4COPD.com and strives to empower people against the disease through this program.

As she is involved with the campaign, she uses her fame and her social media platforms to educate others about the disease, its symptoms, the need for early detection, and the risk factors. Emmy-nominated actor Jim Belushi, multi-platinum recording artist and television icon Billy Ray Cyrus, Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner, and Grammy-winning country music legend Patty Loveless have joined Patrick in her campaign so far.

In a conversation with Car and Driver back in 2012, she explained why she took that path and how she was involved with the COPD works.

"My grandmother died from COPD. She was in a wheelchair, on oxygen 24 hours a day," Patrick said while answering why she was involved with the campaign. "She struggled to just breathe. COPD kills more people than breast cancer and diabetes combined. It’s such a sad thing, and trying to help is a way to honor her and maybe do some good."

COPD, or Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, is a lung disease that makes breathing difficult. Once someone is diagnosed with the disease, it is not curable. However, treatment can help slow the progression. Once diagnosed, one suffers from coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath.

Danica Patrick made her NASCAR debut with the Xfinity Series in 2010 and raced in it for five years, participating in 61 races. During these races, she claimed a pole and seven Top-10 finishes.

Two years after Patrick's Xfinity Series debut, she joined the Cup Series in 2012 and racked up 191 races in over seven years. In the Cup Series, Patrick claimed a pole position and seven Top 10s again. Her last race in the top tier of stock car racing was the 2018 Daytona 500.

After joining the Cup Series, Patrick became the first woman driver to win a pole position. Prior to that, she also won the prestigious award of being the Most Popular Driver in the 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series.

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When Danica Patrick touched upon her retirement decision

As a full-time driver, Danica Patrick raced her final season in 2017 and appeared for only one race in 2018, the 2018 Daytona 500 at the Daytona International Speedway. Following this, she retired from the NASCAR Cup Series.

Danica Patrick gets ready to put on her helmet prior to the start of the Firestone Indy 200 at Nashville Superspeedway. - Source: Imagn

Patrick appeared as a guest on the TV show Nightline in May 2018, where she unraveled why she decided to retire despite having years of racing left within her. Here's what she said, as per abcnews.go.com:

“It wasn't in my heart anymore. What I love about racing is that ability to progress and get better and finish better and better and ultimately win. And I just felt like that was becoming less and less something that was in my control."

In addition to the NASCAR Cup Series, Danica Patrick also has impressive IndyCar Series statistics, with 116 races in over eight years and a win (the 2008 Indy Japan 300 at Motegi), the first for a female driver in the sport's history.