Born without arms, but born to win. A NASCAR engineer in Fort Mill shares his secret.

God gave Richie Parker a mind. An attitude to try at a problem until he solves it. A severe and lasting distaste for losing.

So Parker starts there, not with the arms he doesn’t have.

“Don’t look at somebody and focus on what they don’t have or can’t do,” he told Fort Mill Middle School students Friday morning, fielding typical questions of how he completes common tasks.

“Focus on what they can do.”

Parker is an engineer with Hendrick Motorsports. He designs racing and safety gear for some of the biggest names in NASCAR. Despite being born without arms, something he now sees as a blessing. If for no other reason than the way it shaped his mindset.

“There’s not a lot of give up in me,” Parker said. “I thank God for everything He gave me. But I also thank Him for everything He didn’t give me.”

Tori Robinson, Spanish teacher at the school, said the school’s annual Black History Month program is about the present, too. Bringing in someone like Parker, who is African-American, shows what persistence and perspective can mean for someone.

The South Carolina native who gets questioned on how he brushes his teeth or puts on his shirt is a top engineer with the NASCAR team boasting seven top Cup series championships since he arrived.

“He reminds us that you can do whatever you want to do,” Robinson said.

Parker is used to being unique in a situation. When he arrived at his company of about 450 people, there were a couple more full-time African-American employees. There are more than 600 employees now. Parker thinks there is one African-American employed full-time there – him.

Still, many at his Hendrick family are closer to Parker than members of his actual family.

“We all have a lot more in common than we have differences,” he said.

They particularly have plenty in common when racing season starts, as it does again Sunday with the Daytona 500. Parker cheers for company drivers, if in a little different way. It’s part of designing driver safety parts.

“I’m excited,” he said. “I want us to win, but my biggest thing is I want to see Dale Earnhardt Jr. get through the race and be safe.”

Cars have been a nearly lifelong passion for Parker. He is able to drive classic and other cars with his feet and a special setup. He designs some of the tools he uses to get by without the use of arms. It takes a while for people to wrap their minds around his way of doing things. Like the driving instructor who wasn’t going to have him parallel park or three-point-turn, not knowing Parker’s dad taught UPS drivers and was harder on him than any instructor would be.

Parker did all the driving skills.

“I try not to get outside myself to prove people wrong, but that was one of those times,” Parker said.

Parker left students Friday with the ideas that all students, no matter what, have challenges. And every student, no matter what, has a gift. Sometimes it takes the challenge to find the gift. With the right attitude, Parker believes anyone can. By doing the absolute best they can without excuse.

“In any situation in life that’s all that anybody can ask of you, and that’s all that you should ask of yourself,” he said. “It should be your best at all times.”

This story was originally published February 24, 2017 at 4:25 PM with the headline "Born without arms, but born to win. A NASCAR engineer in Fort Mill shares his secret.."