‘Legacy of life’: Family shares how Kyle Busch’s Bundle of Joy Fund helped them overcome infertility
"We just needed a chance."
"We just needed a chance."
"We just needed a chance."
In the wake of his death, NASCAR driver Kyle Busch is being remembered not only for his historic wins on the track but also for his work to help families experiencing infertility.
In 2015, he and his wife, Samantha, started the Bundle of Joy Fund after struggling to conceive and undergoing in vitro fertilization to have their two children. The couple recognized that the cost of IVF procedures can be out of reach for many families, so they decided to help lift that burden by providing grants.
Jessica Lizarazo and her husband are one of those grant recipients. The Charlotte couple tried for five years to conceive but were unable to, despite trying other fertility treatments.
“I did get pregnant once, and that turned out to be an ectopic pregnancy, which required emergency surgery,” Jessica said. “And so we were already thousands of dollars in debt at that point.”
Jessica is an elementary school art teacher, and her husband runs a small business. Neither of their insurance policies covered the high cost of IVF treatments. She describes the years of trying and not succeeding to grow a family as isolating.
“You see your friends get pregnant and you're just waiting and waiting and waiting and years go by, and you wonder what's wrong with you,” she said.
In 2018, the couple applied for a grant through Kyle and Samantha Busch’s Bundle of Joy Fund, which has provided over $2 million in grants to couples struggling with infertility. Jessica described it as their last, Hail Mary attempt to have the children they’d been dreaming of.
One day, they were told to go to their fertility clinic to do an interview for the grant. However, when they showed up, they were met by Samantha Busch and $20,000.
“It was just an amazing feeling,” Lizarazo said. “It was like, we have a chance. We have hope,” she added.
The grant allowed the Lizarazos to get their first IVF procedure. Jessica became pregnant in 2018 and gave birth to their daughter, Lola, in 2019.
“We waited for years to have that moment, and she was in front of us,” Jessica said, describing holding Lola for the first time. “And it was just so special.”
15 months later, the couple welcomed their son, Mason, using another embryo frozen during the IVF treatment. Today, Lola is 6 and Mason is 5, and the family says they are the bundles of joy they had always dreamed of.
“Lola is my quiet child. She loves to play sports,” Jessica said.
“Mason, he is the one that is more outgoing,” she added.
The Lizarazo family is now part of a larger community created by the Bundle of Joy Fund. Recently, Mason had the opportunity to walk the runway with the Busch family during the Catwalk for a Cause event in Charlotte, which benefitted the Bundle of Joy Fund, among other charities.
During another fundraiser, a painting done by Lola was sold for $375. All of the proceeds went to help the Bundle of Joy Fund’s mission.
The Lizarazos once felt alone in their journey with infertility, but today, they are connected with other families who have benefitted from the fund.
“Every year we have a play date with all of the families, so we get to reunite and see how each of the kids are growing,” Lizarazo said. “Samantha and Kyle, they're there. They show up with their Brexton and Lennix, and it's it just feels like a family.”
With Kyle’s passing, Jessica says it feels like part of that family is missing. However, she says, through the fund, he will never truly be gone.
“He's going to leave a legacy of life,” she said.
You can learn more about applying for a Bundle of Joy Fund grant by clicking here. You can donate to the cause by clicking here.