Last year Wawota hosted a Relay for Life which was hugely successful bringing in 335 participants including 30 teams. Overall the night brought in $141,084.29 for the Canadian Cancer Society. Though successful, Wawota is now struggling to find organizers for the event this year.
A meeting at the Wawota Parkland School library was held on Tuesday, Feb. 4, for interested parties to volunteer their time in organizing this year's Relay.
Relay for Life Specialists Roberta Yergens and Carly Gowan arrived to make a presentation to those interested, but sadly, despite a few interested messages, no one arrived to take part.
"The community was really engaged last year and the event was a huge success," Gowan said. "We understand that it is a small community though and that they may need to skip a year before hosting such a big event again."
Michelle Klein, this year's chair, had been wondering if there would be enough interest in fundraising this year as the community of Wawota and surrounding areas have been very generous this past year.
Klein, however, was not daunted by the lack of interest and hopes to find members of other communities to join in the event as small communities in the area could be even more successful if they came together for such an event.
Therefore, if people come forward in the next couple of weeks this year's Wawota Relay for Life may still be a possibility, though without interested volunteers it will not be able to be held.
If this is the case Klein says she still wants the community to partake in some way and may possibly hold a mini-relay for Wawota School if other communities do not show an interest this year.
In addition to the mini-relay, Klein explained she may continue to make plans for a Relay for Life in 2015 and look to hold the event every other year.
According to Klein last year's co-chairs, Shawn and Kristen Murray, were not interested in continuing this year as they are quite busy rebuilding their home after it was lost in a fire.
Klein decided to attempt the feat as she has watched loved ones battle cancer.
"I personally have watched my mom battle cancer and lost my grandma and with Cienna [Friesen] last year I wanted to be involved this year," Klein explained.
Though somewhat disappointed in the turn out, Klein did say there were some people who had expressed interest but were unable to attend that evening and she hopes other communities in the surrounding area will decide to help.
If interested people are able to contact Klein at (306)739-2981 or through email, crzmom2011@outlook.com.
The Relay for Life is the biggest fundraiser the Canadian Cancer Society holds. Through a twelve hour relay it brings together communities and people touched by the disease. People gather together to share their stories and come together for the common cause of fighting back against cancer.
With nationally acclaimed fundraisers people are often concerned with the percentage of money raised which will remain in their province and go towards helping people locally. The Relay for Life is dedicated to people and 93 percent of every dollar raised remains in the province where it supports friends, family, co-workers, and neighbours.
Overall relays are very symbolic. The relay is to begin as the sun is setting, which corresponds to someone being diagnosed. The night then becomes colder and those walking become tired, which symbolizes the exhaustion and weakness of someone battling cancer. The rising sun then takes on the form of life after treatments.
During this time luminaries are lit both honouring survivors and remembering loved ones lost to the disease.
Klein will continue to look for others interested in helping as an average committee can include between 14 and 21 individuals with subdivided duties to lessen the load, though events are able to be organized with as few as six people.
Relay for Life Specialists explain this number may vary as it depends how much time and work an individual can give to organizing the event.
