Despite the abnormally cold April weather, last Saturday’s Relay For Life attracted a huge amount of support from the Connecticut College community. This year marked the school’s third annual Relay, which raised a total of $24,000 toward the fight against cancer.
The event was co-chaired by Koreen Shoham ’13, Lauren Manning ’12 and Sean Hackett ’12, with a total of forty-one teams of participating students.
The night kicked off at 6 PM when cancer survivors from both the Connecticut College and New London communities walked their first lap around a track on Tempel Green, followed by students and other supporters.
Following the opening ceremony, many on-campus performance groups showed their support, including several a cappella groups, the improv comedy group N2O, DJ E@zy and the school’s gospel choir.
One highlight of the evening was an energetic performance by Run For Cover, a cover band composed of Connecticut College faculty. They played hits like “Stacy’s Mom” and “Walking on Sunshine.” The Relay for Life committee filled the night with activities and games like “Birthday Party” at 3 AM and Bingo at 6 AM to keep participants busy. Throughout the night, the Relay For Life committee provided food and hot beverages for sale under the main tent, and all proceeds were added to the school’s overall donation.
Although many students chose to come and go throughout the evening, Relay For Life continued until 8 AM, and some dedicated team members stuck it out until the end. Anna Williams ’13, a captain of Team Justice, was up all night and was impressed with the amount of people of all ages who stayed awake. “There were so many people taking laps around the track all through the night. It was really heartwarming to watch.”
One of the key aspects of Relay For Life was an event called Luminaria. Participants began by buying small white paper bags and decorating them with the names of loved ones who are either fighting cancer or have been lost to cancer in the past. The bags were covered in pictures and memories and small candles were put into the bottom of the bags before they were placed on the ground lining the entire track. Once participants created their bags, they took a silent lap around the green, taking time to read the bags lining the pathway.
Shoham explained that it was the impact of this ceremony that inspired her to help lead the event. “I was the logistics chair for Relay last year and I was at the event when it was raining,” said Shoham. “I saw how dedicated everyone was and then I watched Luminaria. I was overwhelmed with a sense of pride and appreciation. That was when I decided to lead this year’s event.”
Though the event has already passed, Shoham explained that the Relay For Life committee is still working toward raising as much money as possible, and donations for this year’s Relay will be accepted through August. To show your support for the fight against cancer, go to www.relayforlife.org/conncoll and donate. •
