Woodstock Relay For Life: We're ready as Relay For Life in Woodstock for 2016 has arrived

On Friday June 10, the place to be is College Avenue Secondary School

Set up your camp site and then enjoy an evening of walking ... Accept The Baton

It’s never too late to register for Relay For Life in Woodstock, so you can still sign up and donate at College Avenue Secondary School on the day of Relay on Friday, June 10.

The registration tent will open at 4:30 as many registrants are signed up with a team – and most teams will be setting a camp site inside the CASS track.

The opening ceremony is at 7 p.m. and is quickly followed by the Survivors’ Lap. Master of ceremonies will again be Dan Henry from 104.7 Heart FM.

The keynote address is from Kay-Lynn Stevens this year. She’s a Woodstock 19-year-old student battling brain cancer. A link to her story is below.

Upon arriving at CASS, each participant much check in. I like to use the term ‘check in’ as most often each person has already registered through their team or online. If money still needs to be submitted, the banking committee will be inside CASS to assist you in final tabulations of your donations.

If you are a cancer survivor, there is a tent for registering and receiving a t-shirt. Cancer survivors can register for Relay for no charge, but as we certainly know, they are often the largest collectors of pledges and donations. Any care-giver – by the way -- for a survivor is also admitted at no cost.

The food tent is open from 5:30 – 8 p.m., but closed during opening ceremonies. The menu is supplied by Boston Pizza and Swiss Chalet. The coffee is from Tim Hortons, while additional food tent donations are received from Water Depot and Scott’s No Frills.

Relay For Life – Woodstock organizing committee is extremely pleased with our on-going sponsors and their assistance. Check out the previous post here which notes many many sponsors, who have donated money, product, time, and sometimes all three.

If you have any questions or comments throughout the event, talk to someone in a bright orange t-shirt from the organizing committee.

Relay can be described as a solemn or serious event, but at the same time it’s most certainly all about fun and enthusiasm too, and in fact often family fun as Good Beginnings daycare is the sponsor of the children’s tent with games, crafts and prizes. Among the sponsors of the children’s activities are Home Depot and Blue Cow Delivery. A Shriners clown or two or three will also be present.

The Woodstock Camera Club are consistent volunteers at Relay For Life and we thank them again for their talent and time as they will take team photos and capture many other great event moments.

2015 -- Vuteq

2015 -- Holy Trinity Church

The hair styling school at Fanshawe College will again be available for hair cuts – for those interested in donating hair to the cancer society and cancer patients.

After the opening ceremony, but before the luminary ceremony, entertainment on stage will be from two different local bands. Performing around 7 p.m. is a group called Teacher’s Pet. After 9 p.m., the scheduled performers are returning to Relay as The Grapes are exceptional musicians which you could say are ‘back by popular demand’.

MISSION To Cure Cancer

If you’re looking for more details on the various forms of cancer, there is a ‘mission tent’ open throughout the Relay For Life event with lots of information available from the Canadian Cancer Society.

The Luminary ceremony is at dusk as the luminary tealight candles are lit around the track – luminaries purchased to remember someone who has died from cancer, but also to honour those battling the disease currently. It’s significant to note, many of the cancer survivors walking around the track are still undergoing chemotherapy and other treatments for cancer, including guest speaker Kay-Lynn Stevens and dozens of others.