BERKELEY – The annual Relay for Life has handed the baton over to a new leader and it is ready to make the rounds again.
The event raises money for the American Cancer Society, which has donated more than $5 billion to cancer research since 1946.
The Berkeley-Lacey Relay for Life will be returning to Veterans Park in Bayville on August 12 and 13. (The address of the park is 9 Tilton Boulevard but most people just know it as the large park on Veterans Boulevard east of Central Regional’s campus.)
As usual, the relay will start on Saturday with a Survivors Luncheon at noon followed by opening ceremony held around 2 p.m. After that, participants start taking laps, said chair Robyn Griffith.
Entertainment will be on hand throughout the event, in the form of a DJ, bands, games and more.
At 10 p.m. there will be a luminaria ceremony. This is a touching moment when lanterns symbolically light up the darkness.
The relay raises money for cancer research and support of families. It got its start in 1985, when Dr. Gordon Klatt walked and ran for 24 hours around a track in Tacoma, Washington, raising money to help the American Cancer Society. The walk was about 83.6 miles and he raised $27,000. The next year, the Relay for Life was born. It has continually been an overnight event since then. No one walks for 24 hours straight, though. They take turns, and that’s why it’s a relay.
Last year was feared to be the last Berkeley-Lacey relay, the event’s leaders said at the time. It is a huge undertaking and COVID-19 made gatherings of cancer survivors and caretakers a dangerous idea. However, there was clearly desire from locals because the event raised about $42,000, more than twice their initial goal.
Relays are still popular as we start to rebuild from COVID-19. It’s an outdoor event, so social distancing is possible. However, since there are cancer survivors with compromised immune systems and caretakers who are close with people who are currently fighting the disease, caution is urged.
In 2021, the event was supposed to be held in the summer, but COVID numbers were too high so it got pushed to the fall. But in fall, the numbers were still high in the county so the group changed the walk to a drive-by celebration.
How To Join
The relay can be found by visiting Cancer.org. Click “Relay For Life” toward the bottom of the page, and then click “Join A Relay.”
You can also visit secure.acsevents.org/site/STR?pg=entry&fr_id=104890
