A total of 81 teams and several thousand people gathered May 29 and 30 at Kent’s French Field for the 11th-annual Kent Relay for Life. The event raised $189,000 for the American Cancer Society, and gave participants a chance to walk for a cure – and for hope.Alita Chamberlain has participated in the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life for three years. Her sister has cancer and her aunt was recently diagnosed, making the relay a personal event for her, like many of the walkers.
But this year, Chamberlain’s team grew in leaps and bounds, as she included her entire second-grade classroom at Millennium Elementary in the mix.
“It really came out of a lesson about Martin Luther King and how one person could make a difference,” Chamberlain said during a lap around the track at French Field Friday night.
It turned out many of the kids in the class had family or friends also dealing with cancer, and so the idea of forming a team for the relay was born.
The team hosted fundraisers and collected money, raising $1,000 to go to fight cancer.
“I’m really proud of them,” Chamberlain said.
On Friday, the team members were out in force, putting in their time on the track with thousands of other participants raising even more money in the battle against cancer.
“I think it’s really important kids are aware they can make a difference,” Chamberlain said. “And they’ve shown that.”
But Chamberlain’s Dreamers weren’t the only team making a difference. From school groups to church groups to families, 81 teams from around Kent gathered at French Field Friday for the 11th annual Kent Relay For Life, one of the top money-raising relays in King County, according to event chair Lance Goodwin.
Goodwin said the goal for this year was to link past and future generations and make them proud.
“I think we’ve done that,” he said as the sun began to set on the first evening of the relay.
Goodwin said this year also focused on getting more teams and more involvement from survivors, who open each relay with a ceremonial lap, followed by a ceremonial lap for caregivers. After that, teams made up of local walkers take turns walking laps for 24 hours, all to battle cancer.
Goodwin said he became involved with the relay because his mother died of the disease. He wanted to do something.
“Everybody needs to do their part,” he said. “I’m sure we’ll see an end to cancer in our lifetimes.”
This weekend the relay raised $189,000 for the American Cancer Society and Goodwin said more is expected to trickle in as the weeks go on. This year’s number is up from the $175,000 raised last year, even though corporate sponsorship dollar dropped nearly in half this year to $12,000 due to the lagging economy.
Among the teams walking for family members was Angie’s Angels, a team made up of friends and family of Angie Herbert, who died four years ago after a battle with brain cancer.
Formed by Angie’s husband, Shawn Herbert, the team including all of their children – who appear as stick figures on the team’s T-shirts – as well as friends of the family.
“We really want this to be a tradition for them,” friend and co-organizer Dee Klem said of the kids.
According to Herbert, his wife walked in the relay and continuing it was “continuity” for the kids.
This was really something she believed in,” he said, adding that she was a Kent-Meridian grad, so the field itself had memories for her as well.
Both Klem and Herbert said the fundraising was important, but more importantly, the relay gives a sense of community and reinforces for the kids just how many people’s lives are touched by cancer.
“Even if people aren’t bringing in thousands of dollars, they leave here with a different sense,” Klem said.
Talk to us
Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.
To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.
