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RELAY FOR LIFE
Harlan Enterprise
Relay for Life honors cancer survivors By Emily Perkins emily.perkins@harlandaily.com
An annual Relay for Life event honoring cancer survivors and those who have lost their battle is scheduled for June 14. Liz Couch, chair, said the celebration will begin at 6 p.m. and last until 2 a.m. at Huff Park. Couch said this year’s theme is centered around “sending cancer on a permanent vacation.” Each Relay for Life team will decorate their tent/campsite as a vacation spot, including Paris, France, Disney Land, Hawaii and Margaritaville. The event will also include lighting of luminary bags along the Huff Park track to honor survivors and remember those who have died. You can purchase a luminary bag for $5 any time before or during the event. Couch said she believes in the organizations mission and added “I believe their research will find a cure for cancer.” “Research is only one part of the wonderful things they fund,” Couch said. Couch said the Hope Lodge provides a free place for patients and caregivers to stay througout the treatment process in Lexington. During 2018, the Hope Lodge provided 33 Harlan County cancer patients and their caregivers a total of 565 free nights of stay, around $79,100 in savings, according to Couch. “Since the Hope Lodge opened in 2007, they have provided 251 Harlan County patients and their caregivers with 3,792 free nights of stay — a total savings of $530,880,” Couch said. “That’s pretty in-
Annual event scheduled Friday at Huff Park in Harlan
Photo by Chris Jones
credible!” The Hope Lodge also provides patients and caregivers with food and transportation to treatment sessions. Couch expressed her gratitude to event sponsors, saying, “we greatly appreciate our sponsors and teams.”
Sponsors include City of Evarts Tourism, Monticello Bank, United Steelworks Local 14491, Mount Pleasant Funeral Home, Sazon Mexican restraurant, WYMT, Cornett’s Lumber & Hardware, Harlan Little League, the Harlan Enterprise, WTUK FM and the city of Harlan.
“If you see a Relay for Life fundraiser, just remember that we never know which dollar will be the dollar that finds a cure,” Couch said. “It could be your dollar!” For more information regarding future Relay for Life events, contact Couch at 606-573-8286 or 606-505-5564.
RELAY FOR LIFE
Harlan Enterprise
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EVENT SCHEDULE 6 p.m. — Opening ceremony Prayer lead by Ronnie Hampton Presentation of color by Cub Scout Pack 149 National anthem performed by Wendy Clem 6:30 p.m. — Guest speaker, Debra Hampton 7 p.m. — Survivor ceremony Recognition of survivors Survivor/caregiver lap lead by Harlan Police Department and escorted by the HHS, HCHS football teams Parade of teams 7:30 p.m. — Start of live music Free games courtesy of Harlan Co. 4-H 8 p.m. — SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) Demonstration with knights in full armor Exhibition by Flips and Flops Gymnastics 9 p.m. — live music 10 p.m. — Luminaria ceremony 11 p.m. — Team games and music 11:30 p.m. — Dude Looks Like a Lady Contest Midnight — Door prizes Midnight to 2 a.m. — team games, music, dancing and fun 2 a.m. — Closing ceremony
Relay raffles
Chances are being sold on a couple items to benefit the Harlan County Relay for Life. Tami Baltimore donated a piece of furniture in memory of Frank Baltimore and Tracie Bennett’s sewing club, God’s Sew Good, made a quilt using a collection of Relay for Life T-shirts. Drawings will be held at midnight.
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RELAY FOR LIFE
Harlan Enterprise
‘Jailbirds’ take donations for Relay for Life
Chances are being sold on a couple items to benefit the Harlan County Relay for Life. Tami Baltimore donated a piece of furniture in memory of Frank Baltimore and Tracie Bennett’s sewing club, God’s Sew Good, made a quilt using a collection of Relay for Life T-shirts. Drawings will be held at midnight.
Harlan Enterprise
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606.589.5514
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RELAY FOR LIFE
Harlan Enterprise
Photo by Chris Jones
Remember and honor: Dedicate a luminaria Relay For Life participants and donors remember loved ones lost to cancer and honor those battling the disease by dedicating luminaria bags. Luminaria bags are transformed and illuminated after dark at every local Relay For Life event. Each luminaria is personalized with a name, photo, message or drawing in memory or honor of a friend or loved one who has been affected by cancer. Luminaria can also be dedicated in support of a relay participant. Each luminaria candle represents a person. They are our mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews,
friends, coworkers and so many others. All events offer a classic, white bag. Other luminaria dedication options may include a gold bag and a tribute torch. Once you begin the luminaria donation process, you will see the options available at your event. The Luminaria Ceremony occurs at every Relay For Life event. As the sun sets, luminaria lining the track light up the night. A hush falls over the crowd that had been overflowing with celebration. Relay For Life participants, survivors and caregivers then gather to remember loved ones lost to cancer and to honor those whose fight continues.
Photos submitted
Harlan Enterprise
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Relay for Life began in the mid-1980s Staff Report
The American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life, an annual event held in Harlan for the past several years at Huff Park, will take place on June 12 beginning at 6 p.m. The Relay For Life event began many years ago in Tacoma, Washington, as the city of Destiny Classic 24-Hour Run Against Cancer. According to the ACS’s website, in the mid-1980s, Dr. Gordy Klatt, a Tacoma colorectal surgeon, wanted to enhance the income of his local American Cancer Society office. He decided to personally raise money for the fight by doing something he enjoyed — running marathons. In May 1985, Dr. Klatt 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 30 minutes with him. He raised $27,000 to fight cancer. That first year, nearly 300 of Dr. Klatt’s friends, family and patients watched as he ran and walked the course. While he circled the track those 24 hours, he thought about how others could take part. He envisioned a 24hour team relay event to raise more money to fight cancer. Months later he pulled together a small committee to plan the first team relay event known as the City of Destiny Classic 24-Hour Run Against Cancer. In 1986, 19 teams took part in the first team relay event on the track at
the colorful, historical Stadium Bowl and raised $33,000. An indescribable spirit prevailed at the track and in the tents dotting the infield. The American Cancer Society Relay For Life is a life-changing event to give everyone in communities across the globe a chance to celebrate the lives of people who battled cancer, remember loved ones and fight back against the disease. At the Harlan Relay For Life event, teams of people camp out at Huff Park and take turns walking or running around the walking track there. Each team is asked to have a representative on the track at all times during the event, because cancer never sleeps. The Relay for Life event begins with a survivors lap, which is an inspirational time when survivors are invited to circle the track together and help everyone celebrate the victories they have achieved over cancer. The Survivors Lap is an emotional example of how Relay For Life participants are ensuring more lives are saved each year. Caregivers are also recognized and celebrated at Relay For Life. These individuals give their time, love and support to friends, family, neighbors and coworkers who face cancer. At Relay For Life, people understand the frustrations and joys of being a caregiver, since the effects of cancer reach far beyond just the person diagnosed. After dark, Relay For Life honors people who have been touched by cancer,
and remember loved ones lost to the disease during the Luminaria Ceremony. Rose said torches are lit, each one bearing the name of a person touched by cancer and participants walk a lap in silence.
As people take time to remember, those who have walked alongside others battling cancer can grieve and find healing. This is a time that truly highlights the importance of defeating this disease.
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RELAY FOR LIFE
Harlan Enterprise
File photo The annual Relay for Life event will occur on Friday at Huff Park. Those in attendance will include cancer survivors, members of local high school sports teams, family and friends of cancer survivors, the Cub Scouts and many others.