Relay raises cash, creates community

Jenny Marder

Golden West College’s track was transformed into a makeshift village

last weekend, and it reverberated day and night with the hum of music

and the sound of athletic shoes pounding the dirt.

It was with seemingly unlimited energy that more than 1,000 people

took part in the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life event,

raising a total of $117,075.29.

“That 29 cents is very important, because every penny helps,” said

Taryn McDonald, manager of the Surf City event.

Surf City’s ninth annual Relay for Life attracted 39 teams

averaging 20 members each. Each team’s goal was to keep at least one

member circling the track from 10 a.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Sunday.

The 24-hour event raises money for cancer research, educational

programs and services for cancer patients and their families in

Orange County.

“It’s become more than a fund-raiser, it’s about how we reach out

to the community and how the community connects to us,” said Jennifer

Horspool, spokeswoman for the American Cancer Society.

The Waltz’s Wharf Remissionaries, a team based out of the Waltz

Wharf Restaurant in Seal Beach, set the double record for the most

dollars raised and the most laps walked. The 22-member team raised

$23,960 and completed a total of 435 laps.

“Almost everyone has someone they know who’s had cancer or who’s

fighting cancer, and we’re proud of being able to raise money to help

find a cure for it,” said John Ryan, general manager of Waltz’s

Wharf.

Cancer survivors walked the first lap together to kick off the

day.

Bags with burning candles, known as “luminaria bags,” lined the

track. Each of the 300 bags is meant to represent a person who is

either battling cancer or has lost his or her life to the disease.

During the Luminaria Ceremony, all of the lights were dimmed, while

messages people had written to their loved ones were read aloud.

“Lung cancer stole my dad from me,” “Mom, you can beat this,” and

“13-year survivor, way to go,” were some of the messages, Horspool

said.

“This was probably the most heartfelt portion of the whole Relay

for Life,” she said. Luminaria bags that were set up on the bleachers

to spell out the word “hope” were rearranged by the end of the event

to spell “love.”

Also featured throughout the day were dancing, music, a limbo

contest and a kid’s camp. The Huntington Beach Kiwanis Club held a

hamburger barbecue, and the Huntington Beach Fireman’s Assn. served

pancakes and sausages to the hungry and weary relay teams Sunday

morning.

Many leave the relay with a newfound feeling of belonging,

Horspool said.

“People would say, I had no idea something like this even existed

out there,” she said. “They go there and see everyone like them.”