Joe Dunlap gives his son Jackson, a survivor of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a ride around the track in his own little red wagon filled with toys and prizes. Alex Brown, the 4-year-old son of Dennis and Angela Brown, prepares to enter Homeland Community
The 2008 Relay For Life of Warren County Committee, in cooperation with the American Cancer Society, presented its sixth annual Relay For Life event last weekend at Nunley Stadium with 48 Relay teams participating. According to event co-chairman Dwight Burch this year’s Relay brought in $131,000 on its way to reaching the goal of $135,000. ‘There’s still some money to come in,’ Burch said. ‘We’ve still got some out, some donations we know are coming in that haven’t made it in yet, and there is a little bit of money left to count. We think we may hit our goal, since traditionally there’s some dollars that come in afterwards.’ A total of 48 teams participated this year and each of the booths were set up to represent a place ‘ a town, city, street, country, or other kinds of areas, like the ocean. Some of the more creative ideas included Homeland Community Bank’s ‘Under the Sea,’ ‘Guatemala,’ from Centertown United Methodist Church, Westwood Church’s ‘Walking the World for a Cure’ cake walk, and a real play on words, ‘Jamaican My Cancer Go Away’ from Buddies Battling for a Cure. Burch said everyone was pleased with the event and the turnout. ‘It went great,’ Burch said. ‘The teams worked really hard. They went above and beyond on seeing how creative they could be as far as raising funds. They started earlier. There was more outside fundraising as opposed to just trying to raise it all the night of Relay.’ The event itself featured a wide range of local talent, including music from Sound Machine & Jason Gross, provided by John Chisam, Claire Cochran, Just Lookin’ Around and later on in the event, Kelly’s Karaoke Contest, where anyone could demonstrate their vocal talents. The ‘Dude Looks Like A Lady’ competition was, as always, a traditional favorite, and the Relay ‘Treasure Hunt/Scavenger Hunt’ was fun for all ages. The Luminaria Ceremony and reading of the names of those lost to the disease brought the fundraising to a temporary halt as everyone took time out to honor those individuals. Though cancer research is certainly the main aim of the fundraiser, Burch says there are other areas Relay funds help support. ‘It also goes to fund other projects at the American Cancer Society,’ Burch said. ‘Like the ‘Look Good, Feel Better’ program, which is primarily for those undergoing chemotherapy. It helps fund the Hope Lodge, there’s one in Nashville over close to Centennial, which is for people who are going through cancer treatments. It’s a place for them to stay free of charge. Part of the money funds that.’ Burch says its always encouraging to see how the county reacts to this event, and is proud that over its six years in Warren County, close to $650,000 has been raised. ‘It amazes me how Warren County, even with the economy like it is, always seems to come through when it needs to,’ Burch said.
