Relay for Life - April 9-10, 2011

This was the 2011 Relay for Life weekend in Redlands. Gina and 9 of her students participated and did an awesome job of raising money for the American Cancer Society. This year's theme was Fairytales so the team chose to decorate their campsite around Jack and the Beanstalk. Gina had contacted The Liddy Shriver Sarcoma Initiative and they had sent her brochures and bracelets to include in their informational display. Today I'm posting her photos and write-up of the event.

A portion of their Display Board

April is usually a beautiful month in Southern California, but it can also be a bit unpredictable, which was the case this past weekend. After a 90-degree weekend April 1-3, we got socked with unseasonably cold weather - and snow! - this weekend. Just in time for Relay for Life.


Best Campsite



Fortunately, the snow didn't extend over the hill, about five miles into the next city where this year's Relay was held, but it was still pretty cold. Daytime temps were only in the low- to mid-50s, and overnight temperatures were in the low 30s. Despite the setbacks, my kids toughed it out, raising over $2,200 for the American Cancer Society AND winning the trophy for the best campsite at the Relay. According to the judges, our team's site best tied together our personal mission with this year's theme, sharing Pete's story and educating other Relay teams about sarcoma.

Jack's Beanstalk

The day began with some welcoming remarks and a speech from a breast cancer survivor, and then all the survivors - I would guess around 60 or 70, but I didn't count - started the opening Celebrate lap while everyone else lined the track and cheered them on. That was the first of many emotional events. Over the course of the 24 hours, we heard from other survivors, including the father of the youngest survivor registered at this event, a two-year-old girl named Taylor from Guam, currently undergoing treatment in Southern California and was invited by the team from Red Lobster after her family ate there for dinner recently.

After the rain came the rainbow

Sometime around 5, I ducked into the tent to eat some dinner when one of my students came in and said it was raining. I asked if it was raining or drizzling and he said sprinkling, so I stayed put. A few minutes later, it was pouring! We scrambled to move the tables, get the posterboard with Pete's story and brochures from the Liddy Shriver Sarcoma Initiative out of the rain, and save Luminaria bags. Unfortunately, many Luminaria were ruined, but the volunteers did the best they could to recreate those destroyed by the rain. Luckily, the one I made for Pete was unscathed, but one I made for a friend and co-worker undergoing treatment for GBM (brain cancer) turned into a soggy mess. Eventually, the rain and wind moved out and we were treated to a welcome sight: the sun and a huge rainbow.

Pete's Memorial Photo

After the Luminaria were lit, we moved off the track to the stage where the sister of our club's president gave the speech for the Remember ceremony. This summer, they lost their grandfather to cancer, but both of these young people had been involved with Relay since before cancer ever touched their lives. Next was a slideshow of participants' loved ones who lost their fight, and the picture of Pete holding a huge striped bass was the second one. Even though I knew it would be up there, it still hit me like a ton of bricks. We cried through the lone bagpiper's mournful song and then followed the piper in silence - except for sniffles and sobs - around the track in the dark, with only the Luminaria bags to show the way. A former student of mine who was at Relay with one of the other schools' teams offered me his arm and walked me around the track.



Pete's Luminary Bag*



Around midnight, I gave up, but not before I'd logged 15 miles around the track. The cold and exhaustion of the day got to me and I crawled into the tent with some of the kids to try to stay warm and get a bit of rest. I didn't really sleep, but I got to get off my feet for a while. The teams are supposed to have someone walking the full 24 hours, and one team had someone running - 215 laps in all or roughly two marathons - for most of that time. I resumed walking shortly after 6 a.m. at 33 degrees and logged another two and a half miles before the closing remarks and the final lap - the Fight Back ceremony. At the closing, Relay organizers announced the event had raised over $45,000 so far - and were still counting.

Through events such as this one, hopefully, enough money, awareness, and support will be raised so that one day, cancer will become a thing of the past and the senseless deaths of so many, like Pete, will be prevented. Thanks to those who supported my team and my kids. Celebrate! Remember! Fight Back!

* The words Gina chose to write on Pete's Luminary are from "Oceans" by Pearl Jam:

Hold on to the thread
The currents will shift
Guide me towards you
Know something's left
And we're all allowed to dream
Of the next time we touch.

You don't have to stray
The ocean's away
Waves roll in my thoughts
Hold tight the ring
The sea will rise
Please stand by the shore
I will be, I will be
I will be there once more...