Relay For Life
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by Brooke Delly
o one ever wants to hear the words, “You have cancer”. Last year, I came home from school and my parents told me they wanted to talk to me. So I sat down because I knew that what they were about to tell me was serious, but nothing could prepare me for what I was about to hear. “Brooke, your aunt has breast cancer.” I wasn’t really sure if they had said anything else after that, because at that moment, a rush of questions flooded my head, causing my stomach to turn, and my eyes to water. I thought the world was going to end. My aunt was my role model. I wanted to be just like her one day, and hearing these words made me sick. I started blaming God, and asking why He would do this to her. She’d never done anything to deserve what she was about to face. Every day, for what seemed like months, I would ask my parents multiple times if they’d heard anything about how she was doing. I asked them so often that it was starting to get annoying, especially since nothing had changed since the last time I’d asked them. So once I stopped asking, I heard the news I was waiting for. My mom told me my aunt would be okay…after she had the tumor and her breast removed. This news was shocking to me. I wasn’t quite sure how to take it. Don’t get me wrong. I was glad that she was going to be okay, but I feared that something
Celebrate
would go wrong in her surgery. I kept repeating to myself, “My aunt, my hero, is going to be okay.” A few weeks after her surgery, I got an email from her saying that she was going to be involved in an American Cancer Society event called, Relay For Life. Relay For Life is a 24 hour event where your community gets together to help raise money and fundraise for cancer awareness. I knew from that moment on that I was going to do anything and everything I could to help with the fight against cancer, because everyday thousands of people die from this terrible disease. Ever since the day my aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer, I have been helping the world fight back against the disease. Being involved with Relay For Life is truly the best experience of my life. Last year, I joined Relay For Life and helped raise over $57,000. At R e l a y , you have your own team and you take turns walking around a beautiful track for 24 hours to show that cancer never sleeps. When you aren’t walking around the track, you can stay at your tent, fundraise for your team, or participate in the fun entertainment that the event puts on. This year, not only do I get the privilege of being a team captain, but I am also on the committee for the entire event. I am in charge of all of the entertainment, so believe me when I say that this year will be one to remember.
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Fight Back
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So what are you waiting for?! Sign up and help us fight back against cancer. If you are interested in Relay For Life and the fight back against cancer, go to
w w w. r e l a y f o r l i f e . o r g / m e n l o p a r k c a .