Preparations underway for ACS Relay for Life

Pictured are those walking the Survivors' Victory Lap at last year's Lincoln County American Cancer Society Relay for Life. These individuals represent only a few of the reasons the community should participate in the 2008 relay, which is set for Friday and Saturday, April 25 and 26, at the Curry Colvin Recreation Complex.

Preparations have begun in earnest for the Seventh Annual Lincoln County American Cancer Society (ACS) Relay for Life.

The community celebration will take place Friday and Saturday, April 25 and 26, from 7 p.m. until 7 a.m. at the Curry Colvin Recreation Complex on Rowland-York Road.

The theme for the relay is "Cancer is NO Vacation."

During the night, teams, consisting of from eight to 15 people, will have at least one of their members walking around the track at all times to show support for the ACS and its mission to eliminate cancer as a major health problem.

At the present time, a record 15 teams have signed up to take part in the event. A list of the teams as well as some of their fund-raising activities is as follows:

.. "BPs for the Cure of Cancer" (Bethany United Methodist Church and Pine Grove UMC).

One of the fund-raising activities sponsored by this team is a fish fry scheduled for Saturday, April 5. Tickets, which are $5 each, may be purchased at the Lincoln County Tax Commissioner's Office, and the plates may be picked up at R & R Automotive Sales & Leasing, next to Fast Times Convenience Store on Washington Highway.

.. The Ebenezer Baptist Church "Cancer Commandos."

To raise money for the relay, this team will hold a drawing for a variety of fabulous Easter baskets. To enter the drawing, contact Debbie Tutt at 706-359-3733 or Syvaleen Murray at 706-359-5502 or 706-359- 1686.

The drawing will be held at Ebenezer Baptist Church on Easter Sunday.

Price's Grove Baptist Church and St. Luke Baptist Church will likewise hold drawings for Easter baskets.

.. First Baptist Church. .. "The Courthouse Crew."

.. The LCHS Student Council.

.. The Lincolnton UMC "Cowgirls."

.. The Rocking R "Rockers" (Rocking R International, Inc.).

.. "Martin's Crossroads Youth - Ages 0 to 99" (Martin's Crossroads Congregational Holiness Church).

To raise money for the fight against cancer, this team will be hosting a "Ladies' Luncheon" in the church fellowship hall on Saturday, March 29, beginning at 12 noon.

The guest speaker is Linda Laircey.

Tickets, which are $10 each, may be purchased at the Lincoln County Tax Commissioner's Office or by calling Hazel Poole at 706-359-6507.

.. Mulberry C.M.E. Church.

.. Pleasant Grove C.M.E. Church.

The church is planning to host a fish fry on Saturday, March 29, at the home of Doris Blackwell on the Augusta Highway.

.. "St. Luke Saints" (St. Luke Baptist Church).

.. "Lincoln Lifers '08" (Paula Henderson and friends).

This group will hold a cookout at Clark Hill Rentals on Peachtree Street on Friday, April 4, beginning at 12 noon.

.. "Team Senior Beta" (LCHS Senior Beta Club).

These students will be selling baked goods at various school-sponsored athletic events.

.. Price's Grove Baptist Church.

The church is set to host a spaghetti supper on Friday, March 21, from 6-8 p.m. The cost is $5 per plate.

.. "Farmers State Bank Gang."

This group is planning to hold a bake sale from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Friday, April 4, at the bank. With some of the best home-made pies, cakes, cookies, and candies in the county, no one will leave hungry.

Moreover, Lincolnton Baptist Church, which is not sponsoring a team, will host a spaghetti supper to raise funds for the relay on Sunday, April 20. For more details, contact the church office at 706-359-3303.

Also, the Huddle House is serving free pink pancakes every Wednesday for a donation to the American Cancer Society of $5 or more.

Furthermore, on Friday, March 15, various teams will come together from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the vacant lot beside the Lincolnton Post Office for a "Paint the Town Purple" fundraising extravaganza.

The event will feature doughnuts, tickets for Easter basket drawings and other relay events, fun, food, and much more.

Be sure and wear purple!

The executive committee for the 2008 Lincoln County ACS Relay for Life is comprised of:

.. Brenda Danner McGahee and Travis Reid - Co-Chairmen.

.. Linda Willgus - Sponsorship.

.. Carrie Parker and Marveen Zellars - Team Recruitment and Retention.

.. Tawanda Cullars - Luminaries.

.. Paula Henderson - Survivorship.

.. Renee Guthrie - Accounting.

.. Melissa Burgess, Jeremy Latimer, Liz Dunaway, and Daravious Cullars - Entertainment.

This committee is currently recruiting entertainment for the evening. Those who are willing to share their time and talents to benefit this most worthy cause can call Melissa Burgess at 706-359-3131.

.. Kathie Davis and Nelson Brooks - Logistics.

.. Catherine Bowen - Website Manager.

The web address for Lincoln County's Relay for Life is http:// events.cancer.org/rfllincolncounty.

.. Kenny Adair and Crawford Asbell - DJs and Emcees.

.. Doris Blackwell, Debbie Tutt, and Hazel Poole - Relay Assistants.

Local residents are reminded that one of the highlights of each relay actually takes place prior to the allnight event. Scheduled for Thursday, April 17, the dinner honoring cancer survivors and caregivers is always a meaningful time of camaraderie, fun, and inspiration.

According to Paula Henderson, who is in charge of survivorship, "A person becomes a cancer survivor the minute he is diagnosed with the disease. We encourage all survivors and caregivers to attend the dinner and be a part of what promises to be one of the best relays ever."

Those who have yet to receive a letter from the American Cancer Society inviting them to the banquet should contact Henderson at 706- 359-2248. The deadline to RSVP is Friday, April 11.

The banquet will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the fellowship hall at Lincolnton UMC.

Concerning the actual relay, Danielle Caldwell, community manager for the ACS, recently announced that Lincoln County has obtained $16,000 in sponsorship commitments - the most money ever raised by the county from sponsors.

The list includes the Prater Family Partnership, Fast Times Enterprises, Inc., Georgia Power Company, Newberry Baptist Church, Farmers State Bank, Cliatt Crossing, H & H Industrial Maintenance, Rocking R International, Inc., Wills Memorial Hospital, J & T Service Center.

Twilight Improvement Association, Inc., the Lincoln County Chapter of the NAACP, St. Paul UMC, New Tabernacle Baptist Church, Faith Temple, Scott & Drew Construction, Golf de L, Wynn Masonry, Charles Owen, Inc., Midway Forest Products, Henderson Logging Company.

Wilkes Telephone & Electric Company, Huddle House of Lincolnton, Southern Line Services, Lincolnton Animal Hospital, Pennington Paint & Body Shop, Johnson Equipment and Rental, Doug Newman and State Farm Insurance, Michelle R. Harrison - Attorney at Law, Rayle EMC.

Broad River Realty, Aycock Truck Parts/Woodchip Transport, First Assembly of God, W.T. McWhorter III, Inc., Salem Baptist Church, Lincolnton Feed & Seed, El Portal Mexican Restaurant, Rowland & Ware Auto Parts, Inc., Lincolnton Welding & Machine, Inc., Big Country Surveying.

Farmers & Merchants Bank, Southern Cleaning Products, Inc., Lee Builders, Inc., Reed Ice, Reed Cylinders, Jeff and Sherri Easter, Lewis Bus Lines, Bell's Food Market, Mattison and Associates, Inc., Lincolnton Marine, Inc., Clay Turner Realty, and Radio Shack of Lincolnton.

The credit for this phenomenal number of sponsors goes to Linda Willgus, sponsorship chairman.

In her remarks, Brenda McGahee, co-chairman of the relay, encouraged everyone to come out and support the 2008 Lincoln County Relay for Life. "We believe this year will be the best ever!

"Until someone in your family is diagnosed with cancer, you really don't know how important Relay for Life is," she stated. "It only takes one dollar at a time to find a cure for cancer."

A few of the highlights of this year's relay will be:

.. The Survivors' Victory Lap - Cancer survivors, young and old, will walk the opening lap of the relay thereby giving the community a chance to applaud these individuals for their strength and courage. In essence, the victory lap is an affirmation of life.

.. The Luminary Ceremony - The lighting of these special candles, placed in weighted bags, will give those present the opportunity to celebrate the lives of those who have survived cancer and to pay tribute to those who have been lost to the disease.

Each luminary will be lit either in honor of someone who has survived cancer or in memory of a loved one who lost the fight against cancer. The names of the individuals will be prominently displayed on the bags.

The luminaries will be sold prior to the relay for $5 each.

.. The "Balloons to Heaven" Ceremony - Those in attendance can purchase helium-filled balloons at the relay and enclose notes to loved ones inside. During the ceremony, all of the balloons will be released simultaneously.

In addition, the event will feature wonderful, mouth-watering food and great entertainment including the "Ms. Relay 2008 Pageant."

The funds raised during the relay will go toward furthering the ACS's mission to eliminate cancer through research, prevention, and early detection programs. The annual event represents the hope that those lost to cancer will never be forgotten, that those who face cancer will be supported, and that, one day, cancer will be eliminated.

For more information about the Relay for Life, contact Brenda McGahee at 706-359-6712 or 706- 359-5536 or Travis Reed at 706-401- 3406.

The first ACS Relay for Life was held in Tacoma, Washington, in the mid-1980s. The ACS's signature event was born when Dr. Gordy Klatt, a colorectal surgeon, decided to do something he enjoyed - running marathons - to enhance the income of his local ACS office.

In May of 1985, the surgeon spent a grueling 24 hours circling the track at Baker Stadium at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma for more than 83 miles. Throughout the night, friends paid $25 to run or walk with him for 30 minutes, raising $27,000 to fight cancer.

Months later, Dr. Klatt pulled together a small committee to plan the first team relay event known as the "City of Destiny Classic 24-Hour Run Against Cancer." Nineteen teams took part in the relay.

Relay for Life is currently held in nearly 3,400 communities nationwide and raises more than $1 billion each year for cancer research, education, advocacy, and patient services programs.