If you have never been, the Relay for Life is one of the premier, community-based fundraising events throughout the county, and even the world. The event lasts 18 hours, from 6 PM Friday night, until noon on Saturday. There are many aspects of the event I could talk about, but there is one obvious one.
We were at the event with our Small Group volunteering. As a group we made and served dinner to all the cancer survivors at the event, as well as helped out with the Luminaria ceremony. This is when it the event gets real.
At 9:00 PM, the lights on the track are turned off so that the hundreds of people stand in near darkness. The only light comes from hundreds of small white lunch bags that are lined up around the track. Each bag has a candle in it, and a name on it. Each name is preceded by one of two things. Either " In Honor of..." for those who are cancer survivors, or "In Memory of..." for those that have lost the battle. At this point, silence sweeps across the previously jubilant event as every one walks the track.
As people walk, they sometimes stop by the bags that they had made for a loved one. Many times they sit next to the bag that has "In Memory of..." written on it. They sit and they cry.
Others are able to look at the bags that say "In Honor of..." and are able to smile, and then cry. I should know. We picked up four of these with Melissa's name on it.
When it is all said and done, it just makes you think. I think how incredibly lucky I am that I could right "In Honor of Melissa". At the same time, I feel great sadness for those that had to write "In Memory of..." But there is also feeling of hope. Hope that because of the American Cancer Society and events like this (this one raised $55,000), one day there will be no more tears shed next to white paper bags.
1 comment:
My favorite bag said "In Honor of Braydon's Mommy"
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