Woodstock Relay For Life: Relay For Life is set for Friday, June 10 in Woodstock

17th annual fundraiser for the Canadian Cancer Society to be held again at CASS track
Accept the baton

Accept the baton.

Ready? Set. Relay!

Relay For Life in Woodstock is getting ready for its 17th annual fundraiser.

It is noteworthy that the format has been modified from last year.

Relay For Life will continue as previous years at College Avenue Secondary School, but the date is now set for a Friday.

Relay For Life in Woodstock is Friday, June 10, 7 p.m. – 1 a.m. and both the local organizing committee and the Canadian Cancer Society’s (CCS) Oxford County community office are truly excited about the 2016 event.

See the charts here which note the number of participants in 2014 and the dollars raised and where the financial contributions are directed to various cancer research projects across the country, along with integral funding to local initiatives such as patient transportation to appointments, peer support groups, and other forms of advocacy and education.

Over the 16 years, Woodstock’s event itself has collected more than $3 million in total.

As participants registered last year, there was less emphasis placed on teams. Good news for relaying fundraisers for 2016 Relay For Life -- as the focus on teamwork has returned. The CCS realizes that many participants are there as a group, perhaps a family raising money for a relative who died from cancer. Teams are also comprised of church groups, service clubs, co-workers, neighbours and even a collective effort from smaller villages such as Hickson, Innerkip and Norwich. Teams have also been prominent entries among youth, including schools and the always-successful efforts of the local 4H club.

REGISTRATION FEE
This year, there will be one consistent registration fee of $15 per person. You can register online now.

However, if you are a cancer survivor and will be taking part in the survivor lap, there is no fee to attend and celebrate your success from treatments.

Relay For Life will again be featuring recognition for top individuals and teams, along with a honour for reaching a specific distance goal (number of laps) over the six hours. Accept the baton and stay on the track with your team for the entire six hours.

Theme laps will naturally return again, along with games, which are often organized by the various teams.

BUY A LUMINARY

Many other important agenda items continue, especially the purchase of a luminary to remember someone who passed away from cancer or to honour someone still battling the disease. Luminaries will be sold in public locations and through various churches leading up to Relay, and by the month of May at the Saturday morning fairgrounds farm market.

Musicians on the stage will entertain the walkers between the opening ceremony and the solemn luminary ceremony and then again until 11 p.m.

Participants can certainly register now online or by visiting the CCS office on Springbank Ave North in Woodstock. After you and your team have signed up, your friends and family can pledge you through online donations.

VOLUNTEERS

The Woodstock committee still seeks additional volunteers for important roles in the main steering committee, so if you can donate a few hours in this capacity, contact the office.

Watch this blog space for more details as the event approaches as there will be a kickoff rally coming up and other significant updates to promote.

Also, if your team has a Relay For Life fundraiser – euchre night, lawn sale, zumba fest, bake sale, car wash, golf tournament, t-shirt sales, barbecue, etc. – simply email your event-before-the event to Liz Wismer-VanMeer and it will be publicized on Facebook and this blog. Also, be sure to ‘Share’ anything you see in the Facebook ‘Group’ page which you feel is excellent information for your ‘FB Friends’ to know about because it could be a recruitment tool to attract even more participants.

Relay For Life. . . It’s A Journey. Go The Distance.

Accept the baton.