Almaden Resident
Community
Photograph by John Medina
Community Jog: Participants jog around the track during the Relay for Life event held June 30 to July 1 at Leland High School to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. This was the first time the relay was held in Almaden Valley.
Anti-cancer relay rakes in six times organizers' goal
By Lydia Sarraille
The setting sun illuminated the hills behind Pat Tillman Stadium at Leland High School as volunteers walked slowly around the perimeter of the track, lighting luminarias for the nighttime hours of Almaden Valley's first Relay for Life, held June 30 to July 1.
Decorated with the names of loved ones who have died from cancer, the luminarias are one of the traditions that have grown out of the American Cancer Society's 24-hour fundraiser. The event, which brought hundreds of Almaden residents together for the weekend, raised more than six times the $25,000 goal set by the American Cancer Society for the relay.
"I'm so excited about the support [the relay has] received from the community," said Patti Gahagan, a cancer survivor and one of the Almaden Relay organizers. "Everyone has been truly amazing, and I can't even imagine what it'll be like next year."
The relay had raised more than $169,000 at press time, and Gahagan said she and the other organizers of the relay expect to keep receiving donations until Aug. 31.
More than 400 people participated in the Almaden event on more than 30 teams. Seventy-six cancer survivors were among the participants.
Sheree Kirby, a 10-year Almaden resident and a survivor of breast cancer, led her group of walkers under the name "Lit Chicks."
Her group, made up of members of a book and writers club, sold used books for $2 each at a booth alongside the track to raise more money.
"None of us are very crafty," Kirby said, "so we thought selling books would be something that tied in with our interests and also might be useful for the people at the relay. When they're not walking, they can grab a good book."
The Relay for Life began in Tacoma, Wash., when cancer specialist Dr. Gordy Klatt spent 24 hours circling the track at the University of Puget Sound to raise money for cancer research.
When his friends and family joined in, the relay was born. As an "endless race," its informal rules require that at least one person from each participating team be moving on the track during the 24-hour event.
For more information on the Almaden Relay for Life and to donate to the cause, visit www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/Almaden.
