Lynne Ruffner, the Event Head for the American Cancer Society Relay for Life of Central Berks, held at the Schuylkill Valley School District stadium, opened the event on Friday, May 15 on an emotional note by thanking “team captains and participants for creating a world with more birthdays.”
Ruffner confirmed that 30 teams were involved in the Relay for Life and that the Relay was celebrating its 30 anniversary this year. She described how the planning committee of 12 people was hard at work since September making arrangements for the fundraiser.
This year’s theme was “Cruisin’ For A Cure” and teams at the Relay for Life of Central Berks raised more than $90,000.
As the Boy Scout Troop 160 of Leesport performed the flag ceremony, Neveah Mitchell sang the Star Spangled Banner in honor of her grandmother, Helen Mitchell.
The Relay of Life Voices of Hope speaker, Ken Miller of Orwigsburg, talked about warriors; people who fight cancer every day. He described how the role of the American Cancer Society is “huge” and how hard it is for people to understand unless they have been cancer patients themselves.
Miller went on to tell the story of his addiction to tobacco, starting at age 15, and how hard it was to tell his family that he was diagnosed with cancer 27 years later. He talked about his fear regarding his daughter. “Who is going to walk this little girl down the aisle?”
Miller cautioned all young people that “what you put in your body… is going to affect you down the road.”
Faith in three people was what Miller claimed helped him get through his fight to survive his diagnosis, and said that it was faith in himself, God, and his doctors, but “not necessarily in that order.”
The Candle of Hope was lit by Tammy Hamm, a native of Hamburg who resides in New Tripoli. Hamm was a member of the Hamburg Moose Family Center Relay team and confirmed that she is a two-year cancer survivor. She was joined by Michael Coombe, Ephrata, the Relay Luminaria Chair for the last 23 years.
Cancer survivors in attendance walked a Victory Lap past the purple and white American Cancer Society informational signs that gave cancer prevention guidance and tips to attendees, as well as past the tents that lined the track representing the Relay for Life teams participating in the event. Applause followed those that walked as their teams, family members, and friends stood to honor them as they passed.
Cancer survivors and their caregivers were treated to a dinner after the Victory Lap at the Survivors Reception, which was planned by Chrissy Nieves, of Leesport, this year’s Survivor Chairperson. Nieves described being involved in the event to honor her grandfather who survived colon cancer. Donated food, served buffet style to more than 200 survivors and caregivers, was given by Applebee’s, Bojangles, Hoss’s, Wegman’s, Clover Farms, Sweet Street, and Sysco, according to Nieves. Nieves also discussed the Color Run scheduled for Saturday, May 16, for which 75 runners were registered by Friday night.
The Hamburg Hawk Walkers were a 20-member team, including Hamburg Area Middle School teachers Tiffany Gruber and Tracy Francis.
Gruber, a seventh grade Learning Support teacher, stated that part of the reason for her participation was in honor of her aunt who recently died from cancer.
Francis, a sixth and seventh grade Social Studies teacher, has been involved in the Relay for Life for 20 years, due in part to her diagnosis of endometrial cancer nine years ago. Francis proudly described the Middle School’s contributions to the American Cancer Society which come from multiple activities that she orchestrates throughout the school year and into the summer.
Evident next to the track was the 2015 Dodge Dart donated by Savage 61 to raise funds for Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society. Five thousand tickets will be sold during upcoming weeks until a winner is picked.
Annie Francis, of Windsor Township, was on hand to help with ticket sales, stating “I like helping out with stuff like this.”
Ticket proceeds are slated to earn $50,000 for the Relay for Life and are available for purchase at Savage 61, Discovery Federal Credit Union, and the American Cancer Society.
As the sky darkened on Friday night at the Relay for Life, the crowd gathered in anticipation of the lighting of the luminarias that lined the track. Solo and choral groups from the Schuylkill Valley School District performed as the luminarias glowed in honor of anyone who lost the fight against cancer.
The words “hope” and “cure” were spelled out on the bleachers in candlelight.
Attendees to the Relay for Life walked a lap around the track together in silence to celebrate the “meaning and purpose” of lives that were lost due to cancer and to think about this year’s theme, “Celebrate, Remember, Fight Back.”
For more information about Relay for Life or the American Cancer Society, contact Barb Bieber, Community Event Manager at the America Cancer Society, at 610-921-2329.