“Celebrate, remember, fight back”. It’s the theme that every Relay for Life event across the nation and even worldwide, hold true in the fight against cancer.
An American Cancer Society event, the 24-hour camp-style Relay for Life Morgan Hill fundraiser will hold its 11th annual event in Community Park on May 19 and 20 this year.
Relay participants join teams, taking turns walking around a circular track or path and raise funds that go toward cancer research and American Cancer Society services for cancer patients. The circular track is a representation of the continuous and never ending struggle that those with cancer deal with, said team recruitment chair and Morgan Hill resident Linda Roma.
“People walk rain or shine, no matter how cold it is – it’s the reason someone is always on the track. It’s a never-ending thing. People will have a small minute of an idea of what the life is like for a cancer patient,” said Roma, whose husband is a cancer survivor.
Kicking off Jan. 19 this year at the Holiday Inn to educate invited guests about Relay, last year’s Relay raised about $58,000 with nearly 300 Morgan Hill participates. Roma hopes there will more participants this year, and more awareness of the types of services ACS provides.
“I’ve always felt that we weren’t reaching the people in Morgan Hill that need to be reached,” she said. “I want to diversify Morgan Hill’s Relay.”
Since the services from the ACS go toward programs to help cancer patients, she wants to make sure Morgan Hill knows they exist, services she wish she knew about when her husband had a cancerous tumor. ACS provides the “Road to Recovery”, which drives patients to and from hospitals free of charge, mammograms for women, wigs for chemotherapy patients, or Reach to Recovery which pairs newly diagnosed cancer patients with a survivor.
Roma expects 75 survivors to participate this year, with a time set aside during the event for survivor stories, prior to the emotional Luminaria ceremony-where paper bags with candles inside are lit at night to represent those that have lost someone to cancer.
There is no minimum for each participant to fundraise, although the ACS recommends $100 per person. A team captains meeting will be Jan.9 at 7 p.m. at the Holiday Inn. For those that are interested in getting involved or donating, visit www.relayforlife.org/morganhillca. Registration is free for teams until Jan. 20.
