Published: February 08, 2006 07:24 pm      

Relay for Life 2006 kicks off

This year's goal is $87,000

“People do not realize how meaningful it is to the family, these people that pull together around them to help,” said Nancy Hamlin at the Relay for Life kickoff dinner held at Jackson United Methodist Church last week. “Cancer is a horrible disease, but there are gains being made all of the time. The research is great and it’s not possible without people like you and the rest of this community that are there to raise the money to help make a difference. If we didn’t have the money to do the research, this would be a battle that we’re going to lose.”

Hamlin, a teacher for 26 years also spoke from her heart about her sister who succumbed to breast cancer this past year.

“The doctors tried all sorts of different things,” said Hamlin. “It was on and off for eight years – a constant battle. We prayed and prayed. Just when I thought that she was free of it, it came back and metastasized in her bones and liver; she couldn’t walk. She was a very active person, and it was hard for her to take.

“The doctors said that she would be lucky to live for four or five months; she finally lost the battle in December. With your help, we can continue to fight cancer. Thank you so much for everything that y’all are doing and continue to do for the American Cancer Society.”

The message was sober, but the mood was celebratory. Several area restaurants donated food for the occasion, and Keara Head and Morgan Hutcheson supplied the entertainment. The Relay for Life Butts County 2006 Chairs, Ray and Angie Swaney, spoke to the importance of the event, and thanked those for their involvement and the restaurants that provided food.

Relay for Life is an overnight event designed to celebrate cancer survivors and raise money for research and programs of the American Cancer Society. The event began in the mid-1980s when Dr. Gordy Klatt, a Tacoma colorectal surgeon, spent 24 hours circling the track at Baker Stadium at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington for more than 83 miles. Friends paid $25 to run or walk 30 minutes with him. Klatt raised $27,000 to fight cancer. That first year, nearly 300 of Dr. Klatt's friends, family, and patients watched as he ran and walked the course. Butts County’s Relay for Life is scheduled for Friday, May 19 from 6 p.m. to Saturday, May 20 at 7 p.m at the Charlie Brown track, Daughtry Recreation Park. This year’s fundraising goal is $87,000. For more information, contact Ray or Angie Swaney at 770-597-4103 or amswaney@bellsouth.net.