Relay For Life '09

The 'Relay For Life' Event took place Friday - April 17th and what an incredible opportunity it was.  We had almost 15 people on our time.  Our team name was 'Sweet & Sassy'...because most of us our 'Sweet' and then there are a few who are 'Sassy'..(mainly me) but all I can say is THANK YOU to everybody who walked with us and shared in this special 12 hour event.  The 'Relay For Life' is put on by the 'American Cancer Society' all over the country.  It is made up of 'Relay' teams that walk from 6:00pm - 6:00am to raise awareness and funds to help someday find a cure for Cancer.

This is the start of the event which is the 'Survivor' Walk..all of us in purple are cancer survivors - some battles are far more severe than others, breast, cervical, brain, and some (like me) are survivors of skin cancer...but bottom line we have all experienced the vulnerability of cancer.  The rest of our team are 'Caregivers' meaning they have taken care of loved ones fighting their fight.

Jori, CJ, Michelle, Allie, Lauri, Kristin - getting ready to start the walk.

Lauri, Lois, CJ, Jori & Me...waiting to start

Here we go.. Sweet & Sassy!!

We Walk for the people we Love and have lost.

We walk for the people who are battling their fight right now.

We walk for those who's battles are ahead.

You don't realize how long 1/4 mile is when you're carrying a banner.

Michelle & Tava - I've known this special lady for 23 years.  I was one of her Mia Maid advisors when she was 15 (of course I was only 18...LOL..NOT but not too far from it) and now we have been in the same ward area for the past 10+ years.  She truly is an amazing lady and I'm so glad we are not only ward members but one of my dearest friends too. 

Sandy & Kelli...all I can say is they ROCK!!

It's because of this special lady 'Lauri' that we are doing this crazy 'Relay'...thanks Lauri for your inspiration and dedication to the cause.  You are the BEST!!

Mother/Daughter Team...Michelle & Allie they are truly wonderful.

Colleen & I went to High School together and now 23 years later we are still walking the track. Colleen is a very special friend and I'm so glad we were able to do the 'Relay' together.  She's Amazing.

There are booths set up at all the different campsites, fundraising and having a good time.  This booth came up with 'Lap Beads'..you purchase the leather tie and then for every lap you complete you got to ADD a bead, for every 10 beads you got to add a PURPLE bead...it was so fun and motivating to see how many laps we had completed by the end of the night.  All of us completed at least 40 laps which is 10 miles and then there were a few Allie, Michelle & Rochelle who beat our 40 lap goal.  Way to go ladies...you are all FABULOUS!!

It's PIE TIME...this was a riot...Lauri and I signed up to help in the concession stand from 8:00 - 10:00pm.  When we got there they sent us out on the track to sell 'PIES'...they were mini pies (Peach, Apple & Berry) for $5.00 each.  Needless to say we totally 'ROCK'D' selling 8 pies in about 20 mins.  We were happy to be done selling pies.

At 9:00pm they did the 'Luminaries' dedication for all those we have lost to Cancer.  Everyone received a candle and luminaries were lit all along the track representing those who have passed away and we walked arm in arm in dedication to those who have gone before us.  It was very touching and emotional to see all of us walking for all of those we have loved and lost.

Kelli, Sandy, Kristin, Tava, Lauri, Allie, Michelle & Mandy 

Kristin, Michelle & Allie - these ladies are the BOMB!!

It's a little chilly out here...so they are taking a break.

Kristin tried to catch a few "zzzz....' however; the music was so loud (they really did a good job at keeping us awake all night) that all we could do was rest.  I'm hunkered down next to her hoping that if I covered my whole head just maybe it would drown out the noise...no such luck.

Alright...we are rested and ready to hit the track again.  I think it's about 5:30am

Lois & Fred - Our 'Relief Team'...they arrived at 4:00am to help walk the last (2) hours and boy were we glad to see them.  Our Hips and Feet were so sore they were definitely a Welcome relief.  Thank You!

Kelda - Our SuperStar...she also came at 4:00am as part of the 'Relief' Team...she was amazing..she put her headphones on, IPod in hand and absolutely kicked butt...she walked (20) laps in the two hours she was there.  WOW...you go Kelda and I hope you'll be back next year. Lois, Fred & Kelda were seriously our 'SuperStars'...THANK YOU for coming and helping us finish the race.

Here we are it's almost 6:00am and this is our Victory Lap..we did it!

Lauri, Tava, Michelle, Allie & Kristin - the die hards.

How fitting is the picture with the 'Eye of the Tiger' in the background.  We all had the 'Eye of the Tiger' to finish this event and know that those who fight this terrible battle also have that 'Eye' to never give up, never quit and to always know that the 'Lord' is by your side, carrying you through.

Our 'Lap' necklaces are full and we are so happy we made it.

Kristin, Tava, Allie, Michelle, Lauri & Kelda

It's 6:00am and we can now go home and 'sleep'.  Thank you to everyone who helped, participated and made the 'Relay For Life - '09' a huge success.  See you next year.