Relayers didn’t let a little stormy weather prevent them from gathering at Riverside Park to “give cancer the boot” at Relay for Life of Indian River, presented by Piper Aircraft, to benefit the American Cancer Society.
After the opening ceremony, and before the skies opened to a deluge of wind, rain, thunder and lightning, cancer survivors and teams did a lap around the park with each declaring that they were fighting back.
“If you look around you, we’ve got friends, neighbors, co-workers and grandparents. Everybody is here for the same reason – to lead the fight for a world without cancer. During the next several hours, we’re going to bring a fight as a community to defeat our biggest rival, and that’s cancer,” said event lead Boyd Baldry.
“We will celebrate, remember and fight back. Each of us has a unique reason for being here. We all have something very much in common. We want to make a difference in the fight against cancer, and we are doing that. You are doing that,” said Baldry.
Relay for Life is the world’s largest volunteer-based fundraising event and for more than 36 years, communities worldwide have come together to honor and remember loved ones and fund lifesaving research. Within days of the local event, committee members announced they had surpassed this year’s $70,000 fundraising goal.
Theresa Woodson, ACS senior development manager, celebrated several fundraising milestones, including Piper Aircraft’s Wings for a Cure Relay team, and its “decade of dedication in leading the fight against cancer.”
This year, the American Cancer Society added a Gold Together for Childhood Cancer initiative to highlight the importance of childhood cancer research, education, advocacy, prevention and services. Walmart Supply Chain picked up the gauntlet as the inaugural presenting sponsor for the initiative.
“Together we are making a difference, and together we are stronger than cancer,” said Baldry.
Until the rains came, relay teams fundraised at the event, selling refreshments, playing cornhole and taking photos in a mock jail. Amidst the festivities, several participants shared stories – some with happy endings and others of great loss.
John Calcagno, Piper Aircraft CEO, told of the misdiagnosis and eventual loss of his wife, Stacy, to Stage IV adenocarcinoma of the jejunum (part of the small intestine), a very rare cancer.
“When I sit and talk about cancer, I strongly urge: Give because you can. Give if your family is not affected. Give of your time. Give of your money, but just be grateful that we have life as it is now. I look at cancer as the No. 1 enemy of any time,” said Calcagno.
United Against Poverty CEO Gwen Butson was among the lucky ones. When she received her colorectal cancer diagnosis, she was given less than a year to live. That was 19 years ago.
“I am here to tell you that life does not end with a cancer diagnosis. Cancer taught me to live life and to take every single moment and enjoy it, and not take it for granted. Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s all about learning how to dance in the rain. Never give up and never give in,” said Butson.
For more information, visit RelayForLife.org/IndianRiverFL.
Photos by Kaila Jones
