Relay For Life Coming To Smithtown High School West

SMITHTOWN, NY — A junior at Smithtown High School West is helping organize a Relay For Life Event at the school. This year's event is scheduled for 5 p.m. June 3 and will run until 5 a.m. the following morning.

Erin Fels, a lead student organizer, hopes this year's event reaches as many people as possible. The event will kick off at the Smithtown High School West Football Field, at 146 Central Road, Smithtown.

"I would love for us to be an event that everyone knows and is just waiting for," Fels said in a news release. "I would love to continue to hear the words, 'When is next year’s Relay?' or 'I can’t wait for Relay.' I also hope that we can meet our end goal of raising $100,000 this year and set an example to others that they can help the fight too."

To learn more about Relay For Life, visit Relay For Life Smithtown.

Fels attended her first American Cancer Society Relay For Life event when she was in eighth grade.

Relay For Life is a volunteer-led experience that unites communities across the world to celebrate cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost to cancer, and raise funds to improve the lives of people with cancer and their families through advocacy, research, and patient support, to ensure everyone has an opportunity to prevent, detect, treat, and survive cancer.

The relay is expecting approximately 1,200 attendees including students, faculty and staff, administration, Principal John Coady, and Assistant Principal Dr. Mike Freiberg, survivors, and caregivers. There will be 55 teams and 354 participants. The Smithtown Relay for Life is one of the top-10 relay fundraisers for the American Cancer Society.

The student-led relay will be the first in-person one since the coronavirus pandemic.

Teams and individuals celebrate cancer survivors, remember/honor those who have lost their battle to cancer, and fight back by fundraising. Relay For Life participants take turns walking around a track or path and enjoy music, games, food, and fun. After dark, Relay participants share an emotional moment when each luminaria is lit in remembrance of a life touched by cancer.

"Together, we take a moment of silence to remember the loved ones they’re dedicated to," Relay For Life wrote.

Since 1985, Relay For Life has raised $6.8 billion, allowing the American Cancer Society to invest $3.1 billion in cancer research, contributing to 3.5 million fewer cancer deaths, according to Relay For Life.

Dollars raised each year by more than 250,000 Relay participants across the country help support the American Cancer Society’s mission by providing education and advocating for the needs of cancer patients and their families, and providing essential services throughout their cancer journey.