Shippensburg University Stands Up to Cancer One Step at a Time
By: Tabatha Pelletier
Cancer lives on without a cure, but Shippensburg University continues to step up in the fight against it. According to main.acsevents.org Shippensburg students raised $38,712.56 through 36 teams and 695 participants. Not only did they donate money, they also donated 12 hours of their time.
Once a year the university holds Relay for Life, a global event remembering loved ones lost, honoring those who have survived and those fighting back against a disease that has already taken far too many. Created by the American Cancer Society, relay offers every community a chance to participate in something bigger than them.
“The funds raised truly make a difference in the fight against cancer. There are nearly 14 million cancer survivors who will celebrate another birthday,” said Erin Dougherty, publicity chair.
Games, raffles, ceremonies, and performances are just a few of the activities that occur throughout the 24-hour event. This year Shippensburg offered even more, entertainment such as a live band, a DJ, and a Miss Relay pageant where guys dressed up as girls.
“Each person who shares the Relay For Life experience can take pride in knowing that they are working to create a world where this disease will no longer threaten our loved or rob anyone of another birthday,” said Dougherty.
Shippensburg University students gather around to listen to Little Heartbreakers, the live band of the night.
One of the most impactful moments of the night was the Luminaria ceremony. During the Luminaria Ceremony bags filled with glow sticks are placed along the track. On each bag lists the name of someone who is currently fighting cancer, has won the fight against cancer, or has lost his or her battle with cancer. All of the lights are turned off and everyone walks in silence around the track while the bags stay lit.
For Colleen Hileman, a Shippensburg University student, Relay is a place devoted to the memory of a lost loved one. “Relay is the time that I reflect on the years I spent with my pap as I look upon the luminary that I make for him each year. Hileman wasn’t the only Shippensburg student feeling emotions at Relay. Fellow student Taylor Lister felt it as she walked for all the loved ones she had lost.
“I walk with my loved ones who are deceased and I walk with my family that is still here trying to find a cure so no-one has to feel the pain of losing a parent or child,” said Lister. For her and countless others being a part of Relay meant being a part of something bigger, a community coming together to fight.
Relay for Life began in 1985 with Dr. Gordy Klatt. He proceeded to walk and run for 24 hours around a track in Tacoma, Washington. He continued and raised $27,000 towards the American Cancer Society.
Today more than 600 universities alone participate each year in Relay. And each year Relay For Life raises more than $400 million through 5,200 communities and 20 countries, according to Americancancersociety.org. These donations are continuously used to invest in new research to help beat cancer and continue the fight to save lives.
To learn more about how you can help stand up to cancer visit http://relay.acsevents.org and cancer.org for more information.