Greetings from Newport Beach, California, USA!
Photo taken on Saturday, May 17, 2008.
Photo taken on Saturday, May 17, 2008.
At the year’s start I mentioned an event with the intent of telling more at a later date. Fast forward four months and I am finally writing about it. The Relay for Life (aka Relay or RFL) is an annual signature event of the American Cancer Society. Many elements make the Relay go from being just a charity fundraiser to a unique experience. Individuals and teams still collect donations and the Kick Off event in January started that fundraising effort. But the big stuff happened last weekend.
RFL is not a one-day, global event. Instead literally thousands of Relays occur throughout the year in communities around the world. I participated in the one for Newport Beach on May 17-18, 2008, while the neighboring city of Costa Mesa had its own a day earlier. Also the event spans two days but it actually lasts 24 hours, which is meant to represent that cancer never stops and we won’t stop fighting back either.
While a traditional charity event is a formal dinner at a hotel ballroom, RFL takes place outdoors at a school track field typically. Teams camp overnight and teammates take turns to walk or run around the track continuously - the ‘relay’ part. The event organizers provide participants with entertainment and activities on and off the track – music, movies, contests, etc. Various restaurants and other businesses donated food for breakfast, snacks, lunch, more snacks, dinner, even more snacks and late-night cravings.
Relays are done differently from city to city, but a common and best part of any RFL is the luminaria ceremony. In the evening hours, the track’s inner perimeter is lined with small white paper bags decorated with writing and art to recognize people who have had cancer. Inside them candles are lit. Other luminaria are arranged in the surrounding stadium to form special words. “CURE” and “HOPE” are perennials but this year another word was added. My photo of the week shows the luminaria lining the track and spelling out “LOVE” in the stands.
Newport Beach Relay made over $223,000, well beyond its goal of $175,000. I was not at the event the entire 24 hours but came and went four times. I stopped by, walked a few laps for my team, left to do some errands, stopped by again and walked more laps, then went to a party, stopped by yet again and walked even more laps until 1:00 AM, going home to sleep in my own bed. I’m too pampered to camp out and snooze in a sleeping bag. I came back one last time at 8:00 AM, stayed for the closing ceremony and helped pack up my team’s campsite. I came home exhausted but if you asked me right then and there if I would do it again next year, I’d say yes immediately.
Angelo
RFL is not a one-day, global event. Instead literally thousands of Relays occur throughout the year in communities around the world. I participated in the one for Newport Beach on May 17-18, 2008, while the neighboring city of Costa Mesa had its own a day earlier. Also the event spans two days but it actually lasts 24 hours, which is meant to represent that cancer never stops and we won’t stop fighting back either.
While a traditional charity event is a formal dinner at a hotel ballroom, RFL takes place outdoors at a school track field typically. Teams camp overnight and teammates take turns to walk or run around the track continuously - the ‘relay’ part. The event organizers provide participants with entertainment and activities on and off the track – music, movies, contests, etc. Various restaurants and other businesses donated food for breakfast, snacks, lunch, more snacks, dinner, even more snacks and late-night cravings.
Relays are done differently from city to city, but a common and best part of any RFL is the luminaria ceremony. In the evening hours, the track’s inner perimeter is lined with small white paper bags decorated with writing and art to recognize people who have had cancer. Inside them candles are lit. Other luminaria are arranged in the surrounding stadium to form special words. “CURE” and “HOPE” are perennials but this year another word was added. My photo of the week shows the luminaria lining the track and spelling out “LOVE” in the stands.
Newport Beach Relay made over $223,000, well beyond its goal of $175,000. I was not at the event the entire 24 hours but came and went four times. I stopped by, walked a few laps for my team, left to do some errands, stopped by again and walked more laps, then went to a party, stopped by yet again and walked even more laps until 1:00 AM, going home to sleep in my own bed. I’m too pampered to camp out and snooze in a sleeping bag. I came back one last time at 8:00 AM, stayed for the closing ceremony and helped pack up my team’s campsite. I came home exhausted but if you asked me right then and there if I would do it again next year, I’d say yes immediately.
Angelo
