Relay for Life Kick off Set for March 24

DAYTON – Relay for Life of the Blue Mountains has set the date for this year’s annual fundraiser kick off, which will take place at the Best Western Hotel at 507 E. Main Street in Dayton on Tuesday, March 24, at 6:30 p.m. The Relay for Life event in Dayton will start on Sept. 19 at 3 p.m. and conclude at 7 a.m. on Sept. 20 at the Dayton High School track.

The Relay for Life committee hopes to get teams formed and registered in March; the theme for this year’s relay will be announced, information on the event will be provided, and door prizes will be awarded.

“We’re really trying to push hard this year,” said Dayton’s Best Western General Manager Eleanor Specht. Turnout was fairly low last year, she said.

The American Cancer Society says one in every 100 Americans participates in an ACS relay event, making it a global phenomenon that paves the way to a world with less cancer and more birthdays, Specht said.

Again this year, Relay For Life event participants and visitors have a chance to celebrate the victory of local cancer survivors during the Survivors Lap; remember those who are fighting cancer or those have lost their battle to the disease during the Luminaria Ceremony; and participate in the Fight Back Ceremony, which gives everyone a chance to proclaim his or her own way of taking action against the disease, Specht said.

Donations can be made by visiting RelayForLife.org. Community members also can start or join a team by following the links to their local Relay event. For more information about the kick off event or on how you can get involved, contact event leader Cindy Gibbons at wolf.fork@gmail.com, or co-chair Delphine Bailey at delphine_bailey@co.columbia.wa.us.

Relay for Life is an organized, overnight community fundraising walk. Teams of people camped out around the track. Members of each team take turns walking around the track. Food, games and activities provide entertainment and build comaraderie at this family-friendly community event. Because it’s a team event, individual participants are not required to be there the entire time.

The American Cancer Society’s website for Relay: http://www.relayforlife.org, has information on the history of the event, fundraising and team building tips and encouragements, more information on the Luminaria Ceremony and the Survivors Lap and other