Relay time is here!

This is another busy weekend, but for such a good cause. It is Relay for Life weekend in Lowell and both Terry and I participate. I regret I had to miss the last few steering committee meetings but I had already been working with the kids at church on Wednesday evening for AWANA all season and felt an obligation to finish up. It will be interesting to see how Relay does this year with how hard our area has been hit in this economic downturn. I know we are down in team numbers, but hopefully not walkers. I know the enthusiasm will be there as always. It never ceases to amaze me how many people are cancer survivors, caregivers, or friends or relatives of people who are battling or have survived a cancer diagnosis.
Our involvement began three years ago after Terry had been through his treatment and had just been told he was in remission. We did some walking that year. The next year our church team began which was named “Beautiful Feet.” It was an enthusiastic, eclectic group of people who gathered to team walk the 24 hours. I must digress here to explain more about how Relay works. It is an event through the American Cancer Society where teams of people join together and the teams attempt to have at least one person walking the course set up or the athletic track for a 24 hour period.These walkers try to elicit donations for their endeavor. People can sign up to walk for one of the hours or more to help reach this goal. During this time the teams have various things they are also doing to raise monies to go for cancer research and support. Lowell has usually done very well really taking the cause to heart. The teams sell things, have games to play, or offer various services. One team has offered therapeutic massages while others have sold food, with the things being very creative they have thought up. Our team has sisters who have graciously come the past two years to make balloon animals and other things which go over well with the children…and even some adults. We are grateful they have offered their services again this year. Their mother usually comes to walk. There is a lot of excitement throughout the whole thing.
There are celebrations for the cancer survivors which include a delicious supper served for the survivors and their caregivers. This is followed by the Survivors Lap where the survivors walk around the track and are met half way through by their caregiver to complete it. This is to acknowledge not only the people who have been through cancer but the people who were there for them during that time. There is also a time to remember those who have lost their battle and honor them. You can buy paper bags called luminaria which you decorate to honor those people or those who are in time of their treatment or who are in remission. At dusk sand and candles are placed in these bags, the candles are lit and the lights to the track are turned off. It is a very moving experience to see the track almost solid with these bags lighting the way for those who are walking. You can usually hear a pin drop during this ceremony.
There is also entertainment during Relay. Music, games, also a silent auction are scheduled. It is always interesting to see what is donated for this portion of the Relay. We have been privileged to help out the past couple of Saturday mornings of Relay to join with some friends to make music. It is a fun time with joking around, doing some singing and just trying to help liven things up a bit while the event is beginning to wind down. Two good friends of ours have come down for this part of the event which adds to the fun. To get to see them, have some fun, and then perhaps go out to lunch makes for a good time.
All good things must come to an end as the old saying goes. The last half hour is the closing ceremony where the awards are given out for raising the most money. We did pretty well last year in that department. I hope we do this year. Then it is time to go home, recover and then begin plans for next year. The battle against this horrible disease never stops. Too many of our friends, family, and others have been down the road this brings.