First Relay for Life event set for Corning
To sign up for the Relay for Life, go to www.relayforlife.org/corningca. For more information, call Sonja Akers at 736-1702.
In less than a month, come rain or shine, dozens of people of all ages will start walking laps around the Corning High School track to fight cancer.
Relay For Life, the nationwide fundraising, cancer-fighting event has come to the Olive City for the first time.
"Isn't about time we had this wonderful event right here in our own backyard," said Sonja Akers, event chairperson. "We have so many people in this community who have been touched in one way or another by cancer and this is a way to remember and honor those people."
So far 15 teams have signed up to make the 24-hour pledge to walk, run and jog around the school's track starting at 10 a.m. on April 28 through 10 a.m. on April 29.
"We expect and are hoping for many more teams," Akers said. "I know this community will come through for us."
Relay For Life teams can be made up of 10 to 20 people from corporations, hospitals, civic groups, families, friends, businesses, clubs, churches and more, who are willing to take turns traveling their way around the track for approximately 30 minutes to one hour, over a 24-hour period.
During the event, team members will be camping out, enjoying entertainment, food, games and camaraderie as fellow team members walk the walk. A special 9 a.m. Cancer Survivors Lap will open the local Relay For Life on April 28, and everyone in the community is encouraged to participate in a Luminaria Ceremony honoring survivors and remembering those who lost the battle against cancer.
Organizers have set a goal to raise $20,000 this first year.
Team captain meetings are on the first Tuesday of the month and committee meetings are the fourth Tuesday of the month at New Life Assembly Church, 660 Solano St.
The theme of the 2012 Relay For Life is Hope in Paradise.
Proceeds from the event will benefit the American Cancer Society in Tehama County.
According to the American Cancer Society, more than 340 Tehama County residents will be diagnosed with cancer this year, and more than 145 will die from the disease.
