They laughed, smiled, joked and even cried as they decorated their Bristol board posters.
Nearly twenty people and an excited blonde toddler filled the cafeteria of Leo Hayes High School on Sunday to plan out the early stages of the Fredericton Relay For Life set to take place at Leo Hayes on June 14.
The participants gathered around tables and worked in teams to create their masterpieces meant to commemorate those who lost their battle with cancer.
“It’s a good way to memorialize things,” said Mark Kirby. “It’s my first time participating in the event in terms of being on the fundraising side of it.”
Kirby lost his sister to Ovarian cancer 4 years ago, and has been involved with the Relay For Life ever since.
He likes the organization and the reason behind the relay.
“It’s a good way to spread awareness to the different cancers that are out there,” he said.
The Relay for Life is a non-competitive 12-hour event that takes place overnight. Participants take turns walking or running around a track with their teams – rain or shine. Teams raise money while they relay in an attempt to aid Canadian cancer research.
It began in the United States in 1985 when a surgeon from Washington who enjoyed running marathons decided to run around the track at the University of Puget Sound to raise money for cancer research.
Dr. Gordon Klatt walked and ran 83 miles that night, and with the help of others, raised a total of $27,000.
Although the Relay For Life has not been going on since 1985 in Fredericton, according to Andrew Despres, Manager of the Canadian Cancer Society, it has been an annual event in New Brunswick’s capital for the past 14 years.
Despres, having only acquired his new position six months ago, is confident that 2014’s relay will be successful thanks to the hard work and dedication of his event planning team.
“I have a great team behind me of volunteers that come back year after year,” he said. “They believe in the cause, and they know how fun it is.”
A group from Remax Real Estate has been contributing to the cause for the past six summers. They normally have a strong representation at the event – their squad typically consists of 15 members.
“We’re all committed to it,” a member said. “We have two people in our office who have been touched by cancer.”
The group was involved in the Relay before their coworkers were diagnosed, but now it means much more to them.
“As a team we’ve committed to raise $10,000, and we’re almost there – we’re at $8,300,” another team member said.
Although the Relay For Life is a great help, much of the Remax team’s fundraising is done aside from this event.
They hold 50/50 draws and have meals every second week at their office that are sold to coworkers for $10. All of the proceeds of these fundraisers go towards the Relay For Life. One dinner auction they hosted raised $3,500 in an hour.
The volunteers who sacrifice their time and energy are the heart and soul of the Relay. Despres works with the volunteers in the province to hold 32 Relays For Life – something that wouldn’t be possible with the cooperation of many.
“We’re grassroots,” he said. “We’re volunteer driven, we have very few staff and we’re here to support [the volunteers].”
Despres says that as much as the event is about fundraising, it is also about raising cancer awareness in Canada. It is about people banding together and working as a team towards a common goal – a cure for cancer.
The Canadian Cancer Society Manager has high hopes for June, and thinks his team of volunteers will pull through this June.
“If it is a great event and everybody has a good time, it is a successful event,” he said.
Johnny Cullen 