Walkers will raise
money for cancer research
By Neal Putnam
The Alpine Sun
ALPINE — Seventeen teams, with 12 to 15 members each, will
take to the Joan Mac Queen track on Saturday morning, Aug.19 for
the first lap of the Alpine and Back Country Relay for Life.
For the following 24 hours, at least one walker from each team
will be on the track, circling it for one hour before passing the
duty on to the next member. Teams will set up camp on the grassy
interior of the school track.
It promises to be an exciting 24 hours, as the
co-chairmen, Carol Lewis and Mary Rynearson, have planned all sort
of events not only to keep the walkers awake through the whole
time but also to help raise a goal of $20,000 for The American
Cancer Society. Along with a Dr. Seuss theme and decorations,
Thing 1 and Thing 2 will greet the teams and lead the first laps
around the track.
The Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem, sung
by Cassidy Burwell, from Starlight’s “Wizard of Oz,” opens the
ceremony at 10 a.m. Each team will tell why they are walking with
their banners, whom they represent, and the team name they have
chosen.
Among them are groups from Boulder Oaks School,
Kiwanis, Curves, and the Alpine Community Church Youth Group,
which calls itself PIMP, standing for its motto, prayer is my
power.
The survivor ceremony at 6 p.m. will be especially
moving as local people who have survived cancer gather at the
staging area. Marcia Walter and Alan Perlin will tell their
stories as survivors of breast and brain cancer respectively. Then
every survivor will be given a dove to release as Paul Nichols and
Cindy Burnham of Descanso sing a duet and the survivors walk a
lap.
Most dramatic and heart warming will be the luminaria
ceremony at 9 p.m. when the track will be circled with 1,000
candle-lit luminaries. Each one will be carry the name of a cancer
victim or survivor written on it by the persons purchasing the
bags to honor someone dear to them.
During the afternoon and evening hours, there will be
constant entertainment. Starting things off will be the Alpine
Chorale.
As the day progresses music and dancing will fill the
air, along with fun laps, like Hop on Pop (Bunny Hop), Hokey
Pokey, Grab-a-Friend and Share the Fun, and even a Hawaiian lap,
where contestants will attempt to hula hoop around the track.
All-night activities are planned to keep teams awake.
There’s a New Year’s Eve party at midnight with the traditional
count-down. Bingo will go at 2 a.m., a poker stroll at 3 a.m. and
Race to Recovery at 2 a.m., where prizes are awarded for the best
built-on-site “vehicle.” There will also be movies until dawn for
the less active
The children aren’t forgotten either. The Kidz Zone
will be open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. will all kinds of fun, like a
Bounce House, Rock Wall, carnival games, water bomb toss, musical
twister and more. For team members needing activity between laps,
there will be volleyball, ping-pong, frisbee, and more.
Albertson’s will serve both lunch and dinner for the
teams while the Lions Club offers dessert. Kiwanis and Lions Club
will do a pancake breakfast at 6:30 a.m. Sunday morning.
The closing ceremony will include the announcement of
awards, thanks to sponsors and workers, and recognition for
relayers who stayed awake the whole 24 hours.
The final lap, like the first one when everyone walked
together, will be timed to finish at exactly at 10 a.m.,
concluding 24 hours filled with both fun and very serious meaning
for everyone.
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