The 2015 Ceres Relay for Life will be held this weekend at Ceres High School in an attempt to raise awareness and treatments of cancer and raising $50,000 for the American Cancer Society.
The 10th annual Ceres event gets underway at 9 a.m. Saturday and is expected to draw at least a thousand people over the following 24-hour period.
It's not too late to get involved in the American Cancer Society fundraiser, said Ceres Relay Committee chair Angela Durossette. A total of 26 teams have signed up and the committee is looking for more. Anyone interested in forming a team or participating in any of the fundraisers may contact Durossette at 581-1480 or email her at adurossette@ceres.k12.ca.us.
The Relay has raised $30,000 before the event starts "so I am anticipating being right under $50,000 before the day of the event," said Durossette.
The Relay gets off to an early start on Saturday when members of the Ceres Lions Club cook and serve up breakfast to cancer survivors after the 9 a.m. survivors' lap at the west of the stadium. Survivors are also given a free gift package and invited to walk the first lap with caretakers or any other supporters.
The Relay opening ceremony will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. then as cancer survivors walk the first lap around the Ceres High School football stadium track.
For the following 24 hours, team members will take turns around the track, either running, walking, wheeling or being pulled. Each team is supposed to have a member on the track during the 24 hours.
The public is welcome to come down to the CHS athletic field and cheer on the walkers and enjoy the entertainment that will be provided over the 24 hours. There will be ample opportunities to play games or purchase items being sold at each team's station. Some teams will sell food and homemade crafts, and offer raffle baskets. Each booth will highlight a specific cancer and will offer literature on that cancer.
At dusk comes the moving Luminaria event, which allows anyone to decorate a bag in memory of a loved one in which a candle will be placed and set around the darkened track as each name is read over the loudspeaker. Luminaries may be purchased for $10 on Saturday morning and afternoon.
The Relay goes all night and closes with a Sunday ceremony at 8 a.m. with the final fundraising announcement.
Funds raised in Ceres will be used to support the myriads of services and research by the ACS. Besides the medical research, the ACS offers emotional support to cancer patients and families, and volunteers provide rides for patients to chemotherapy treatments.
