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Franklin Pierce kicks off its first Relay for Life event

by Nick Vitukevich
Exchange Staff

    Sophomore Caitlin Smith is putting together a signature cancer fundraiser while searching for a large amount of student involvement by organizing Franklin Pierce's first ever Relay for Life.

    Relay for Life at Franklin Pierce will take place in the bubble on Friday, February 20.  Participants will be running through the night for a solid 14 hours, with the event starting at 6:00 p.m.

    Even though the event doesn't take place until February, it's time to start thinking about it. "Right now is the time you have to start forming teams and fundraising. Unfortunately you can't just start and sign up the week before," said Smith, the Relay for Life Event Chair at Franklin Pierce.

     Relay for Life is the American Cancer Society's trademark fundraising event where students form teams and run around a track, all in order to raise money and awareness for cancer. The event takes place overnight, and often participants camp out with sleeping bags and tents along side the track with the only rule of the event being that each team must have at least one person running along the track at all times. With participants running through the night, the underlying message behind Relay for Life is in the motto "Cancer never sleeps, so neither do we."

     Collecting donations for the event is another reason why right now is a key time for students that want to participate. The ultimate goal for the event is to raise $25,000, according to Experience Director Bethany Browne, Franklin Pierce's Relay for Life faculty advisor.

     Though $25,000 is a substantial amount of money, it is not a goal that can't be reached, according to Browne. "If each student participating in Relay for Life can raise $100, then we can absolutely reach this goal," Browne said

     "It takes a lot of time to get [Relay for Life] organized and to get students involved. If it was something that was put together at the last minute, it would be very difficult to raise the $25,000," said Browne. Browne hopes students will respond positively to the event and believes that it is something that will "generate the student's interest."

     It is tradition to have a theme at the event to add some creativity among the teams running. "Changing the channel on cancer" is the theme of the Franklin Pierce event, according to Smith.

     "It's just a start for now but one hour might be something like MTV with karaoke, another hour could be Disney based," Smith said. No matter what the theme is, the event sets aside one hour dedicated to survivors where candles are lit along the tracks in honor of all those who have survived.

     The event is one of Franklin Pierce's first cancer fundraisers in a long time, according to Smith. "I realized that Franklin Pierce hasn't really done anything in the past, and I really wanted to change that and get something started," Smith said.

     According to the American Cancer Society website, one in three people are diagnosed with cancer, and an event such as Relay for Life can help boost the morale of those affected by this disease. "I know students know about [cancer] but I don't think a lot of them have gone through it with having family members that have had cancer so [Relay for Life] may make them more aware and open their eyes," said sophomore Julie Nicholson, the Franklin Pierce Relay for Life Advertising Chair.

     Yesterday, November 20, an informational meeting was held in the Cheshire Community Room to officially kick off Relay for Life at Franklin Pierce. Attendees at the meeting could gather information on Relay for Life, watch a video on the event, and sign their teams up.

     For those who didn't get to go to the meeting last night, there will be meetings held every third Thursday of each month until the event takes place.

     If students would like to sign their teams up they can do so online at www.relayforlife.org/fpu or by contacting Caitlin Smith at smithca@franklinpierce.edu.
 

        photo by Flikr