On March 11 the committee chair's of Wawota's Relay for Life held an informational meeting for the public to become better acquainted with the event which will be held on June 15.
Kristen Murray, Leadership Co-chair, led the introduction to the event with the help of her husband Shawn, also Leadership Co-chair.
Margaret Hill, the Relay for Life contact out of Weyburn, was unable to attend due to poor road conditions.
In all different committees discussed their varied ways to help make the first ever Wawota Relay for Life a success.
The Relay for Life is a signature event that the Canadian Cancer Society holds each year with the help of committed individuals across the country.
Kristen decided to bring the Relay for Life to Wawota after being diagnosed with cancer a year ago. She will walk because she hopes to one day see a world without cancer.
The event is about more than simply fundraising. Though the money raised is important for cancer research, advocacy, support, information, and prevention, the overall event is intended to be a life changing experience.
They walk from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. as a way to acknowledge the fact that cancer does not sleep; so, on June 15 neither will the people who hope to eradicate cancer from the world.
It is a night that is open to all ages and intends to encourage people to celebrate life, remember loved ones who have passed, and to fight back together against cancer.
In celebration of life the event's first lap is made by cancer survivors. It is a celebration of their courage and strength as they take to the track. A dinner will be held for those who will be in the survivor's walk at the Drop-In Centre. The committee's goal is to have 75 survivors walk with them on June 15. Jerri Laird is the Survivor Chair and is currently looking for more willing participants for the survivor's lap.
In charge of Team Recruitment are Amanda Marcenko and Elly Van Winkoop. If interested in putting together a team these are the two people to speak with. Teams can be as small or large as you wish, the only need for the night is to have at least one team member walking on the track at all times. Registration of teams can be done through contacting these individuals or through visiting the Wawota Relay for Life website. Even if registering online a form of participant agreement is still needed to be filled out for the day.
There is no set amount a team must raise; it is simply whatever can be gathered together in pledges. Overall the committee is hoping to have 30 teams register; which they have six already with many people in the area speaking about possibly putting a team together.
The walk is for not only a good cause; but, will be full of entertainment and games throughout the night as well making it a community event not to be missed. Gary Dickson, the Entertainment Chair, has currently been looking for bands to play. With six lined up so far there will not be a dull moment. Games and activities for youth will also be set up throughout the night in addition to the different activities held for those walking throughout the night.
The track will be lit by luminaries, which can be purchased at the banks in Wawota, the flower shop, 2nd Street Eats, and at the relay. Forms are filled out and handed into volunteers who will make up the luminaries. Luminaries are meant to remember loved ones and honour those who have had cancer or are currently in the fight against it. Their goal is to be able to light the path with 1,500 luminaries and encourage everyone to help them achieve this goal.
Sandra Murray and Judy Steinke are the co-chairs of the Food and Beverage Committee. They are looking to find willing individuals to bring various items for the participants on the night of the event as well as help with the survivor dinner before the relay.
As can be seen there is a great need for volunteers for the event, which Dalelynn Fahlman is in charge of. As volunteer chair she will be working on finding volunteers and organizing them. Not only do each of the committees need volunteers, but tables and chairs will need to be set up, registration confirmation at the event will need to be done, counting money following the event, and taking everything down the next day is necessary. Many hands are needed and they hope to be able to find at least 175 volunteers to assist them that day from Wawota and surrounding communities.
Ed Fahlman, Neena Johnson, and Kara Bunz are co-chairs of the Sponsorship Committee. These individuals have been working diligently to raise funds through approaching businesses to sponsor the event. They have sent out a number of letters to businesses and will be following up with phone calls as well as in-person visits in order to reach their goal of $10,000. Currently they have raised $5,600 and have only sent out half of their letters at the time of the meeting. In addition to this they have also found help in the form of two media sponsors.
The committees hope to be able to raise $50,000 in pledges for the relay. They are also hopeful that teams will travel from surrounding communities to take part in the Relay for Life because cancer affects the lives of so many people across not only the province or the country, but the world.
Not only is the event something that will bring people together, but compared to other charities and organizations it gives back the majority of funds raised. Ninety-five cents to every dollar stays within Saskatchewan to support and educate people dealing with cancer.
The event will be hosted at the rink where a track will be set up inside and weather permitting will be extended outside as well. There will be indoor and outdoor tent sites to both rest throughout the night and keep personal belongings accessible. They also facilitate as an area for your team to meet as not everyone will always be on the track at the same time. The teams that register first will receive the indoor tents, so put a team together quickly.
Campers are more than welcome to be brought; but, there will be no power on site and individuals will need to have a generator with them if in need of electricity.
Organizers are hoping they will also be able to put together a bonfire, which will burn throughout the evening. This will depend on if there is a fire ban on at the time as well as town permission.
Survivor participants will receive a yellow t-shirt, committee heads have an orange t-shirt, while volunteers will receive a blue t-shirt. Teams registered will all receive toques. Often at these events part of the fun is making team t-shirts or teams dressing along different themes.
More information will be available closer to the date and captain meetings will also be held in the future to provide more specific information to participants.
The committees are all looking forward to the event and are hopeful Wawota and surrounding communities will rally together to make their first Relay for Life successful. In order to volunteer contact one of the committee chairs or get in touch with Kristen Murray at sksmurray@hotmail.com or (306)739-2527.
