Relay For Life is an overnight event because “cancer never sleeps.” Relay for Life starts at dusk and ends in the early morning hours of the following day. The light and darkness of the day and night parallel the physical efforts, emotions, and mental state of a cancer patient while undergoing treatment.

The Relay begins when the sun is setting as this symbolizes the time that the person has been diagnosed with cancer. As the evening gets darker, this represents the cancer patient’s state of mind as they feel that life is coming to an end. The evening gets cooler and darker, just as emotions of the cancer patient do.

Around 1 a.m. to 2 a.m. somewhat represents the time when a cancer patient starts treatments. They become exhausted, sometimes sick, not wanting to go on and often times wanting to give up.

During these hours in a Relay, participants feel much this same way while walking, but they cannot stop or give up, just as the cancer patient does not stop or give up. By 4 a.m. to 5 a.m. this is symbolizing the time that the treatment comes to an end. Once again they are tired and weak, but they hope they will make it. The sun rising represents the end of treatment for the cancer patient. The morning light brings the new day full of hope of being cured. So do the participants of the Relay, feel the brightness of the morning and know that the end of the Relay is close at hand. When the participants leave the Relay, they can think of the cancer patients leaving their last treatment, and just as the participants are exhausted and weak, so is the cancer patient. But remember never give up on the hope that one day, with everyone’s help, there will be a cure.

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The annual Clinton County Relay For Life event will take place next Saturday night and early Sunday morning, May 14-15 at Mountain View Park. (In case of rain, the events will be moved to Clinton County High School.)

Organizers of this year’s program have changed the format somewhat, by moving the days of the event from Friday through Saturday morning to Saturday through Sunday morning. According to local Relay Chairperson Renee Parrigin, the change was made in hopes of getting more participation and hopefully more people to still be taking part in the events in the early morning hours on Sunday.

The Sunday morning culmination on May 15 will include a sunrise service with Bro. Jim England, pastor of Stony Point Baptist Church, delivering the message and the church will provide a pancake breakfast for all participants.

The times have also been changed, with the events beginning one hour later, at 7 p.m., reflecting a closer time to actual sunset. The program will conclude at 7 a.m. the following morning.

During the event, teams of people–led by cancer survivors taking the first lap around the track–teams of people in the community will take turns walking or running around the track in this non-competitive event. Relay teams consist of individuals representing corporations, churches, clubs, organizations and families.

Sometime during the evening hours all participants will share in a special luminaria ceremony to remember those individuals who have been affected by cancer. Candles will be lit in honor or memory of cancer patients and placed around the perimeter of the track.

The public is invited to support this effort by ordering a luminaria in honor of a loved one who has been touched with cancer.

Luminaria’s are $5 each and forms can be picked up at Albany Elementary School (see Kathleen Gregory) and at some participating businesses or by contacting Parrigin at 306-4736.

Several fundraising events have already taken place over the past few months to raise money for this year’s Relay For Life event and those fundraisers are now winding down as the actual program draws closer.

A final organizational meeting is planned for this Thursday, May 5 at 6 p.m. at Albany First Baptist Church.

Parrigin said this year’s goal was $74,000, Just over a thousand dollars more than the $72,924.31 that was raised a year ago. Also, last year about 30 cancer survivors took part in the luminaria and Relay events and she hopes this year there will be 40 or more cancer survivors take part.

Although some final plans were still being put together for next weekend’s program, the following is a basic run-down of the programs and events that will be taking place between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m.

The Opening Ceremony with survivor lap will take place at 7 p.m.

During the program, Karen Witham will also discuss the Hope Lodge, located in Lexington.

That location is a free place where cancer patients who live over 100 miles away can stay free while receiving cancer treatments.

The following activities afterward include: silent auction; a power point presentation about the American Cancer Society and Relay For Life; SCC-Clinton Center will present “Man I Feel Like A Woman”; cake walk; luminaria ceremony; First Baptist youth group performance; lip sync; hula hoop/bubble gum blowing contest (sponsored by the Early Childhood Center); team feud (sponsored by Albany Elementary); Fight Back ceremony; awards; ice cream social; karaoke (sponsored by Ampyss); limbo; Strong Tower of Hope; Zumba; Name That Tune; water balloon toss; pancake breakfast; clean-up; sunrise service/closing ceremony.

Some of the events, such as “Name That Tune” and Zumba, as well as the “Man I Feel Like A Woman” events are sponsored by SCC–Clinton Center. Equity Group, always a huge supporter of Relay For Life, is sponsoring the ice cream social and water balloon toss.

The public is invited and encouraged to take part in some or all of the Relay For Life events that will take place next weekend at Mountain View Park. Also, anyone who has not contributed to any of the fundraisers but would like to help should contact Parrigin or any Relay committee member.

For more information about Relay For Life or the American Cancer Society (ACS) in general, call toll-free, 1-800-ACS-2345 or visit www.cancer.org.