FHN StuCo members will be participating in the annual Relay for Life at Timberland on May 2.The event will last from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
“It benefits us by getting us out more and more involved in our community and volunteering,” senior Kaitlin Eifert, a member of StuCo, said. “It’s also fun to see how many people are there.”
FHN StuCo members will be donating the money they collected through fundraisers and Mr.FHN to The American Cancer Society. This organization will use all the proceeds collected from Relay for Life to fund their research on various cancer treatments.
“I like to do Relay for Life because it helps give you a different aspect of life and how much you should really cherish the time you have,” junior Monica Friedman, stuco member, said.
It’s $10 to sign up for the Relay for Life, which can be done online. You must be a part of a team to participate, whether it’s with a sports team or a club you’re involved in. Each team must have a member walking the track throughout the entire event.
“The event itself is so inspiring because you get to see tons of kids go in support of cancer research,” Shelly Parks, last year’s teacher sponsor for Relay for Life, said. “But there’s also the kids that have spent time with their school activities asking their friends to raise money and it’s really neat to see that.”
Along the track are different booths with different activities or food. These booths are run by each team. Last year, FHN had a karaoke booth, but this year they are selling coffee. The booths are free to anyone participating in the event.
“The booths are so you can stop walking for a little bit, take a break and have fun,” Eifert said.
When it gets dark outside, the luminaria’s, or paper lanterns, dedicated to loved ones taken or affected by cancer will be lit. At the end of the event, cancer survivors and cancer fighters will take the last lap of the track together.
“My favorite part of Relay for Life is the memorial,” Friedman said. “They’ll talk about different people who passed away and you can write on a bag people that you want to remember. Then later in the night they’ll light the bag up when it gets dark out,” Friedman said. “It’s just cool to see people’s bags to see who’s fighting and who’s lost their battles.”
