The Tripod

This weekend, Trinity College held its fourth Annual American Cancer Society Relay For Life. Over 600 registered students and faculty members gathered at the Jessee/Miller field to raise money for the American Cancer Society, which funds cancer research and support. Students, faculty, staff, friends and family formed teams of 8-15 members and took turns walking around the track throughout the 18 hour event, held from the evening of Saturday, April 25, through Sunday, April 26.

Many established groups on campus formed teams, such as Greek organizations, various clubs, religious groups, and athletic teams. Each team was given a campsite to use as a base, and were encouraged to decorate it and furnish it with everything they needed or wanted during the event.

Relay For Life has flourished since its inaugural ceremony at Trinity in 2006. Last year, Trinity raised over $50,000 at the Relay For Life held in memory of a former professor, Lisa Nestor. In 2006, the Relay won the nationwide Top Five Youth-Per-Capita Event Award from the American Cancer Society. Trinity has raised over $200,000 for the American Cancer Society in the three years of its existence.

The event began with an opening ceremony, during which Principal Lecturer in the Allan K. Smith Center for Writing and Rhetoric Cindy Butos spoke about her experiences as a survivor within the Trinity Community. Following her statements, Assistant Professor of Music Eric Galm and his Samba Ensemble officially kicked off the event by leading a group around the track for the first lap. Shortly thereafter, survivors and caregivers were honored with a dinner reception in Hamlin Hall.

Tri-Chair Kelsey Correia '09 remembers the dinner as a moving experience. "The Survivor and Caregiver Dinner in Hamlin was a great success. We had a dinner with over 50 survivors and caregivers, including Jim Nestor, the late [...] Nestor's husband. Last year's Relay was in honor of Professor Nestor, so it was great to have him. Professor of English and cancer survivor Cindy Butos offered a great speech at the Opening Ceremonies. Dean Ann Reuman gave us all chills with her own experience during the moving Ceremony of Hope."

Throughout Relay For Life there was live entertainment from all the a cappella groups on campus, the Moveable Joints, the Gospel Choir, the Dance Company, Wish Bish, and the Shonda Steppers. In addition to the live performances, there was a lip sync contest, movies, games, yoga, and the option to receive a custom-made airbrushed trucker hat.

Correia was enthusiastic about the outcome of the event. "We had several goals. We wanted to have a bigger crowd and more participants, we had over 100 more participants than last year. We wanted to increase the number of teams we had by 5 and we actually had a total of 67 teams which was 23 more teams than we had last year. Our monetary goal was $80,000. We felt the effects of the struggling economy, but it is fantastic that we raised over $55,000. And we are continuing to fundraise until August, so achieving that goal is still in sight."

She continued, "The only thing I would change for next year would be finding a way to incorporate the Mission/Education activities that we had planned. We literally just didn't have the time during the early hours to have those activities. We had many more people involved, and more faculty and staff signed up this year. We were happy to host the lip sync contest this year and that was a great draw and a fun show for everyone to see. I couldn't have done my part in Relay without Urey Chow and Molly Rose, the other two Tri-Chairs. The three of us started planning Relay in September and it was a long and trying road but we made it, and Relay was a shining success. We couldn't have asked for better weather. (Note: it has either rained or been bitterly cold the last three years) We are proud of the event and would like to thank everyone on this campus who participated and those who helped make it possible."

Article Tools