Health & Fitness
CHS Students Relay for Cancer Research
Dozens of local Chatham High School students participated in last weekend's Relay for Life event to raise money and awareness for cancer research.
Last weekend a total of 31 teams and 337 participants raised nearly $70,500 for cancer research and treatment through Chatham’s first Relay for Life event. Nearly 500 people showed up to participate, donate, and cheer on friends and family members.
Many students from Chatham joined together created their own teams for the race against cancer. Hela Watson, a junior at Chatham High School, led a 12-member team called Sonja’s Squad. Watson and fellow teammates camped out in tents on Haas Field during breaks as they traded off with other teammates. Relay rules state that all teams must have at least one member doing laps during the entire 12 hour event. By the end, Sonja’s Squad raised a total of $1,360 in donations.
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Another student team, the Tumornators, sported neon yellow home-made shirts in honor of cancer survivor and fellow CHS student Shana McLaughlin. This 11-member team was one of the leaders in fundraising at the Relay event with donations totaling $6,275.
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“I hope this is the first of many Relay for Life’s in Chatham,” said Chatham Mayor Bruce Harris in his speech during the opening ceremony. Relay for Life was created by American Cancer Society, which is currently celebrating their 100th year, and is their largest annual fundraiser. Donors and sponsors support teams and individuals as they walk or run to raise money for research, treatment, and information on all types of cancer. Everyone at the event sported purple bracelets, the Relay for Life trademark color.
Relay for Life events span the course of the night to represent the message that ‘Cancer Never Sleeps’. Bags and candles were lit during the Luminaria Ceremony about halfway through the night’s events. “The luminary ceremony was touching and really made me understand how much the money that we were raising had an effect on those affected by cancer” said team leader Hela Watson. “Although I was exhausted in the morning, the night was so worth it and I will never forget it.”
For more information about the American Cancer Society and Relay for Life, visit their websites at http://www.cancer.org and http://www.relayforlife.org
