The Delaware County Relay for Life returned Friday night for the first time in four years – and it was a picture-perfect night.
“Picture A Cure” was this year’s theme, with seventeen teams rallying to raise money for the American Cancer Society – with the ultimate goal of putting an end to cancer.
Delaware County’s Relay is held every other year – and after the traditional event was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic, Shirley Wickman of Manchester says it was good to be back.
Wickman’s family had gathered at the Relay – as they always do – to honor her family’s battle with cancer. She serves as captain of Team Family Affair.
Justin Rieken, who recently moved from Manchester to Hudson, came back home Friday night to participate in the Relay for Life as part of Team 3C Christ Community Church.
Sandy Weber was selling cookies and bars as a fundraiser for her Relay for Life team at Immaculate Conception Church in Masonville. She knows firsthand how important it is to raise money for cancer research.
You could feel that sense of hope as more than seventy local cancer survivors from Delaware County stepped up to the microphone to say their name and what kind of cancer they’ve beaten or are currently fighting. Then the survivors – each in a special purple t-shirt – made their way around the track, as the song “Hero” rang out on the fairgrounds. Their families and teams joined them for their second lap around the track.
And as it grew dark, over six hundred luminaries – featuring the names of cancer survivors and those we’ve lost – were placed around the track and lit, with the crowd gathering to take a moment to honor them all.
Relay for Life Committee Co-Chair Pat Becker says it turned out to be an amazing night for their cause.
Survivors Lap
Team Lap
photos and videos courtesy of Janelle Tucker/KMCH
