Relay for Life 2008: Trinity College

Cancer is something that has affected nearly every home in America. Luckily, research has been able to find ways to prevent, cure, and treat cancer in its many forms. However, research cannot happen without money. Relay for Life, which is run by the American Cancer Society, is an all night walk-a-thon that raises money for cancer research through donations. There are no minimum donations required for members or minimum members of a team required.

Trinity College is going into it's third year of sponsoring a Relay For Life event. It started three years ago when a themed quad decided to make Relay for Life their theme and get the whole school involved. The first year Trinity College raised just about $60,000. Last year it raised $78,000. This year Trinity College is shooting to surpass that. At the moment there are 36 teams, 200 participants, and over $7,000 raised with the event just under 2 months away.

Each participant pays a $10 registration fee and gets a T-Shirt the day of the event. Each member also gets their own website connecting through their team so they can explain why they are doing this, who they are doing this for, their fund raising goals etc. You can also add pictures and send emails asking for donations through this website. My favorite part is that donors can donate directly through the site making it convenient for everybody.

Relay for Life: Trinity College takes place on the outside track. Teams set up tents where non-walkers can hang out or sleep. Each team is required to have at least one member of their team walking the track at all times. Buddy systems tend to work out better so that the walkers have someone to talk to while they are there. Each hour there is a different entertainment. Throughout the night several movies are played on a projector screen with loud speakers so you can still hear the movie even if you are on the other end of the track. There is also a stage set up where several of the schools bands play a set or two. Some events, however not Trinity's, have an hour by hour theme where members bring costumes to wear while they walk, including 50s, punk, fairy tale, etc.

The whole event begins with a survivor lap where Cancer survivors are encouraged to walk together around the track once while they are cheered on by their peers. There are also luminaries that surround the track at night, with names of loved ones that have passed on from cancer. At one point of the night the luminaries are taken to the bleachers were they are put in the formation of the word " HOPE".

Now I know one of the things you must be wondering about is food. There is SO much food and it is all donated. Along with food, there are stacks and stacks of drinks, from water and coffee to Gatorade and hot chocolate. Whatever keeps you awake. Food continues to come throughout the night so the walkers never run out of energy. College kids of bottomless pits as it is.

For more information about Relay for Life, check www.relayforlife.org. For more information about Trinity College's event, see http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RelayForLifeNewEnglandDivision?fr_id=6967&pg=entry

To see my page, see http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RelayForLifeNewEnglandDivision?px=3693606&pg=personal&fr_id=6967