CANTON, Mo. — Relay For Life, the signature fundraising activity for the American Cancer Society, is returning to Culver-Stockton College for the first time since 2011.
The event is scheduled to begin with a kickoff and survivor walk at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 29 in the J.E. & L.E. Mabee Recreation and Wellness Center on the C-SC campus. Teams of participants will walk around a track continually throughout the event to symbolize the cancer diagnosis journey. This fundraiser started in 1985 when Dr. Gordy Klatt, a surgeon from Tacoma, Wash., asked people to donate to the American Cancer Society while he walked around a track for 24 hours.
A lip sync contest, a rock/paper/scissors tournament and a three-legged race are among the activities scheduled throughout the night. A mini-luminaria ceremony will take place at 8:45 p.m. Mini-luminarias (glow sticks) will be sold in honor of people who are fighting cancer and remembering people who have died, and a list of names will be read.
This event is geared to attract the participation of Culver-Stockton students and is held separately from the Relay for Life of Lewis County, which is scheduled for Aug. 29 in Canton, Mo. However, the public is welcome, as are any cancer survivors.
Cancer survivors do not need to register in advance to attend. All registered cancer survivors will receive a survivor shirt and gifts and will participate in the first lap of the evening. Caregivers may join the cancer survivors after the first lap. All teams are requested to have at least one walker on the track for the rest of the night. Caregivers are people who support cancer survivors in any way, such as walking their dog, escorting them to treatments, providing meals or moral support.
Money raised at this event goes towards research and education. The goal for this event is to raise $7,500. Dr. Kelli Stiles, event chairman and an assistant professor of psychology at Culver-Stockton, says a little more than $1,400 already has been raised. To register a team, visit relayforlife.org/cscmo. For more information, contact Stiles at 572-288-6000, ext. 6630, or kstiles@culver.edu.
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Contact the Marketing & Public Relations Office, at pr@culver.edu or 573-288-6000 ext. 6728 for more information.
NOTE: A number that appears immediately after a person’s name (i.e. Jane Doe ’18) is a reference to the year that person earned their bachelor’s degree from Culver-Stockton.