Relay For Life unites students, community
“Cruising for a Cure” with Relay for Life garnered thousands of participants and hundreds of volunteers from the GCSU and Baldwin County community on Friday and Saturday at Walter B.Williams Park.
More than 1,000 luminaries were lit around the Survivor Lap, representing cancer survivors and victims.
Relay for Life had a goal of raising $205, 000 according to The Union Recorder. Baldwin County’s Relay for Life event raised more than $209,000, an amount that went above and beyond their initial goal.
Students from GCSU lent an incredible amount of support by camping out all night and walking the Survivor’s Lap. Many teams also raised funds. The Gamma Sigma Sigma sorority chapter of GCSU raised the most money out of all GCSU teams this year, raising around $2,200.
Heather Hardy, a GCSU sophomore and Gamma Sigma’s Relay For life captain, raised the funds numerous ways which included bake sales, candy and lemonade sales, the annual “Pie the Professors” and letter writing campaigns.
“Relay for Life is a very great cause and we really wanted to come out and support the community,” Hardy said. “Raising money and coming out here to lend our support is the least we can do.”
Beth Gaylor, a GCSU freshman, was also among the many volunteers.
“I am donating my time by coming out here to support,” Gaylor said. “I’m just helping keep things running smoothly and also to enjoy myself because helping out these causes are actually really fun.”
Keith Knierem, a general business major, also donated his time by making sure all volunteers and community members pledged their money in the Relay For Life volunteer tent.
“It’s a lot of work, but it’s an important cause so I’m really glad that I could pitch in for a little bit,” Knierem said. “We’re just out here trying to raise the money so we can help a little to cure cancer because it affects everyone.”
Kim Benfield-David, a GCSU mass communication alumna, is the co-chairperson of the on-site activities at Relay. Benfield was thankful and impressed by the amount of support she garnered from the community and from GCSU. She is also one of the masterminds behind the current competition called “The Philanthropist” where the participants compete in challenges and the winner donates the royalties to the charities of their choice. Benfield incorporated “The Philanthropist” by assigning a task-specific challenge at Relay for the competitors.
“There was never a dull moment at Relay, there’s always something to do for everyone even in the early hours of the morning,” Benfield-David said. “I incorporated a challenge for the Philanthropist at Relay so that the walkers would not be so bored at the early hours of the morning.”
Relay for Life has been held in Baldwin County for more than 14 years and each year has been progressively more successful than the last.
Nancy Mills, Relay for Life’s event chair, is most definitely thankful for all the hard work that the community has contributed.
“It’s more than just a Relay For Life board that puts up these events,” Mills said. “We are lucky to have a very supportive community and a lot of eager volunteers that help make these events for the past few years a great success.”
Mills was also impressed by the amount of younger people participating in the cause.
“A huge chunk of this event was put on by younger people, like the volunteers and board members we had from GCSU,” Mills said. “People assume that young people do not care. Well they are obviously wrong because we had so many people that volunteered from the college. Cancer affects everyone and I’m glad that the younger generation is taking action and being proactive about it.”
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Apr 20 2007. Filed under News.
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