The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
by Julie Cargill Schaley
There are lots of Reasons We Relay. Of all the reasons I listed as I was preparing this article, I narrowed it down to the top three.
The original reason Camp Cargill started participating in the Relay two years ago was because we wanted to honor Grandpa, Fred Cargill.
Unfortunately, you never know who will be the next one to fight cancer and a year ago we had no idea that Grandma wouldn't be here for this year's Relay.
She found out she had cancer last fall and lived life on her own terms until June 15, 2004. So now, Camp Cargill participates to honor Grandpa and Grandma.
The second Reason We Relay revolves around the idea that the Relay for Life is "about a community taking up the fight".
Since the only two members of our family that we have lost were taken by cancer, we participate because we are a family taking up the fight...together.
We see this as a great way for us to not only spend time together, but also work together to try to beat this disease that plagues so many families.
There aren't many families who enjoy spending so much time together, but our family is different. We love spending it!
To prove this point, everyone in our family participated in the Relay For Life this year, including Ken and Deb and their two young children who flew from their home in Las Vegas to be with us.
When I say everyone was there, I mean EVERYONE was there because I truly believe that Grandma and Grandpa were also there putting their stamp of approval on our efforts. How do I know? It is simple, all we had to do was look up and see eight "kisses from heaven" in the sky. To most people, these "kisses" look like airplane trails that cross each other's paths in the sky and form an "X", but my family sees those as "kisses from heaven".
It was a wonderful moment when my kids pointed out Grandma and Grandpa's seal of approval overhead.
We weren't the only ones receiving a seal of approval for our efforts either....about the time that we looked up and counted our "kisses from heaven", Martie Gugeler was in our Catfish Cafe when she noticed a real ladybug, not an Asian Beetle, nestled in between her napkins.
She was almost in tears when she drew her husband and son's attention to it and said, "Look who's here."
She explained how a ladybug showing up during special times has been a sign from her mother Mart (who died from cancer) that she is there with them.
Another reason we relay is because of the sense of community you feel. When you are part of the ACS Relay for Life community, you really feel that everyone is there with one goal in mind..supporting everyone else.
ACS will encourage (and badger) you to do what you can to protect yourself from cancer, they will support those who are in the midst of the fight with cancer, they will celebrate with those who have beat cancer, and they will mourn with those who have lost loved ones to cancer.
The Henderson County Relay for Life Committee publicly sent their condolences, via the Quill, to our family when we lost Grandma in June.
They ran a wonderful article and our picture from last year the day after Grandma died. That really meant a lot to Steve, JR, Chuck, and Lonne and their families.
You feel like you have a bond with people you wouldn't normally feel that way about.
You find yourself clapping and crying for survivors who you don't even know.
You look around and see all of these people devoting their time to the same cause as you and realize that we all have a common goal at that time and place.
We are all working together to remember those lost, honor those who are in the midst of the fight, and work to raise money needed for research to find ways to slow cancer until a cure can be found so that the rest of us won't have to worry if we get that dreaded diagnosis.
So, if you didn't get a chance to make a donation this year or didn't think that your donation would be enough, please remember this for next year....you never know which penny, nickel, dime, or dollar will be the one that will finally put an end to cancer.
As I close here, I want to encourage everyone to start planning now to participate in the Relay for Life next year.
It is a wonderful experience and worth your time, talents, and effort to be a part of it.