Fifteenth Annual Relay For Life Happens May 21-22 In St. Croix

ST. CROIX — The American Cancer Society USVI Unit will be holding its fifteenth annual Relay For Life event on Saturday, May 21 – Sunday, May 22, starting at 4:00 p.m., according to a press release the organization issued on Friday. The event will take place at St. Croix Educational Complex track. The community is invited attend.

Cancer survivors, caregivers, volunteers, and community members will gather to celebrate those who have fought against cancer and remember loved ones lost, while honoring and encouraging those who are still fighting this dreadful disease, according to the release. The Survivors’ Dinner is one way in which cancer survivors will be honored. Those in the community who have battled or are still battling cancer are encouraged to call 340-778-2882, or 340-719-4898 to register for the dinner. This year, each registered survivor is being encouraged to bring a caregiver as his or her dinner guest. Survivors may also stop into the office at 4500 Sunny Isle Professional Building, suite 4, to register.

As proof that one person can make a difference, Dr. Gordy Klatt took the first step of the 24-hour marathon around a Tacoma, Washington track and raised $27,000 for the American Cancer Society in May of 1985. The following year, about 340 supporters joined Dr. Klatt in his overnight event, and that is how Relay For Life was started. Since then, Relay For Life has become a movement that is the world’s largest and most impactful fundraising event to end cancer.

The Relay For Life movement unites communities across the globe to celebrate people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and take action to finish the fight against cancer. At Relay For Life teams of community members and individuals camp out at a school, park or fairground and take turns walking or running around a track. Symbolizing the battle waged around the clock by those facing cancer, the event usually lasts up to 24 hours, and empowers communities to take a stand against cancer. During the event, each team has at least one team member on the tract at all times and prior to the event, participates in fundraising during the months leading up to the event. Individuals and teams raise funds and awareness to help the American Cancer Society save lives.

Dollars raised by Relay For Life participants in the US Virgin Islands are used in the territory to help the American Cancer Society save lives by providing free information and critical services for people with cancer who need assistance, and by helping people reduce their risk of cancer or find the condition early, when it is most treatable.

After dark at the event, a Luminary Ceremony is held where candles are lit in remembrance of those who have lost their battle with cancer and in honor of survivors. The heartfelt love and caring shared by friends and family during this ceremony is both moving and healing. Throughout the evening and into the following day, participants enjoy entertainment, games, music, great food, camaraderie and tons of fun. Long before the last walkers approach the finish line at the closing ceremony, new lifelong friends have been made, old friends and family have been hugged and all hearts have been touched by the magic that is Relay For Life.

The community at large is being asked to get involved because with your help, the lives of even more people can be touched—those who are currently battling cancer, those who may face a diagnosis in the future, and those who may avoid a diagnosis altogether, thanks to the education and early screening efforts of the American Cancer Society through the literature and community work provided. American Cancer Society want you to know they are here for everyone—they always have been, and when you fundraise through your Relay For Life event, you support the American Cancer Society’s mission of saving lives from cancer.

“In spite of the small size of our territory and population, together, our efforts can make a huge difference,” says Tina Beazer, Interim Executive Director of the U. S. Virgin Islands Unit of American Cancer Society.

Visit relayforlife.org/stcroixvi or visit the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Relay-For-Life-St-Croix, to learn more about the event. You may also call the office at 340-719-4898 or 340-778-2882 or email [email protected].