On Saturday, June 10, the 15th annual Relay For Life will take place in the Comox Valley. Hundreds of participants will lace up their shoes and walk, run or stroll the Vanier school track to honour and remember those who have battled cancer.
Relay For Life is a celebration of cancer survivors, a remembrance of loved ones lost, and a way to support the fight against cancer. By giving 12 hours to Relay For Life, you can add years to the lives of others.
When you participate in Relay For Life you help the Canadian Cancer Society fund life-saving research; caring support programs for people living with cancer and their loved ones; and strategies to prevent cancer before it starts. In 2016, 475 participants on 49 teams raised over $102,000 at the Comox Valley Relay for Life.
Relay For Life involves teams of four to 15 people who take turns walking around the track in a 12-hour overnight, non-competitive relay.
Teams consist of families, friends, neighbours and coworkers. The event is held overnight to reflect the fact that cancer never sleeps.
We have a western theme this year 鈥� Let鈥檚 Give Cancer the Boot! In keeping with this theme, Fiddlejam will play in the early evening. Activities will include a barn dance, pie eating contest and line dancing, along with a variety of fun games and western-themed activities to keep everyone active all night long.
Cancer survivors are our honoured guests and are invited to walk the first lap 鈥� the Survivors鈥� Celebration Victory Lap 鈥� to acknowledge and celebrate their courage in their journey with cancer.
We invite cancer survivors and their caregivers to register online for Relay For Life in Comox Valley as a Survivor Visitor, or call 250-338-5454 in order to participate in the Survivor鈥檚 Celebration Victory Lap and Dinner, and receive a Survivor T-shirt.
A Luminary Ceremony will be held at dusk with the Comox Valley Pipe Band playing prior to a silent lap around the track. It is a time to remember and honour those who have battled cancer. Each luminary bears the name of a loved one who has either survived cancer or lost their life to the disease.
After being lit, the luminaries provide light and inspiration through the night. Every registered participant will receive one complimentary luminary.
Luminaries can be purchased for $5 each at relayforlife.ca or at the Canadian Cancer Society Courtenay Unit office at 102 鈥� 1509 Cliffe Ave. in Courtenay.
As dawn breaks, we will gather together one final time to make a pledge to Fight Back against cancer.
Participants will greet the morning with a gentle, invigorating yoga session and then enjoy a pancake breakfast.
Relay for Life will take place this year at the Vanier school track on Saturday, June 10 from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Comox Valley is the top relay on Vancouver Island and in the top five in B.C.
For more information on how to register a team or volunteer at the event, please contact Cherie Kamenz, Annual Giving Coordinator at 250-218-7158, or visit www.relayforlife.ca/comoxvalley.
