The Relay For Life of Canyon will be held at WTAMU Buffalo Sports Complex on April 19 from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Relay For Life is held each year in over 20 countries to celebrate those who have survived cancer, remember those lost to cancer, and inspire and honor those who have fought or are currently fighting cancer.
The event is open to the public, and so far, 32 relay teams and 359 participants have raised around $26,000 in Canyon.
Beth Vizzini, head of Circulation for Library Operations at WT, currently serves as co-chair for Relay For Life’s committee in Canyon. Vizzini said she began getting involved with Relay For Life three years ago when her sister, Amy Warner, was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“We knew cancer had run on my father’s side of the family,” Vizzini said. “(My sister) was diagnosed with BRCA1 mutation, which means you have a higher percentage of getting cancer. She and I are twins, so I got tested (for possible BRCA1 mutation) and it came back positive for me as well. So not only am I doing this because she was diagnosed with cancer, but I am affected too.”
Vizzini said the overall theme of this year’s relay is superheroes, and several staff members of the library have teamed up with the Veterans Network on campus to form Books and Boots. Together, they plan to set up a campsite theme of M*A*S*H at Relay, a tribute to the sitcom that premiered in the 1970s.
Dan Robertson, microsystems analyst for Information Technology at WT, currently serves as entertainment co-chair for Relay of Canyon. Robertson was drawn to Ronald McDonald House and American Cancer Society while living in Oregon five years ago when his niece, Teri Lynn Wells, passed away due to complications from neuroblastoma, the most common solid form of cancer in childhood and infancy.
“During (Relay For Life), you get this sense of pride,” Robertson said, “because you’re helping bring all these people together for one cause. Afterwards, that feeling continues on because you’ve put a hand into helping. You can’t do the research, you’re not a doctor, but you can help raise money that helps go toward the cure and assisting people.”
Robertson was last year’s champion of the Miss Relay competition, which involves a man from each team dressing up like a woman and trying to collect as much money as they can in one hour. Robertson will be crowning the winner of this year’s competition.
Relay will hold what they call the Luminaria Ceremony at 9 p.m. to honor those lost to cancer, support those who currently have cancer, and those who have fought cancer in the past.
Laura Marshall, director of the Instructional Resource Center for Library Operations at WT, said the ceremony is her favorite part of the Relay event.
“It really pulls at your heart strings,” Marshall said. “Seeing those luminaries at the track when they turn out the lights, everybody’s just really quiet and you just think about the people that maybe you’ve lost, or the people you’ve known in your lifetime that survived. That’s a good feeling.”
Marshall said being a part of a Relay team makes relationships feel closer, and there is a friendly competition each year between the Relay teams to see who can bring in the most money.
