If you don’t know anyone touched by cancer, you are in a rare minority. 

Relay for Life Southern Portage

Cassi

Monday, May 14, 2012

This is me, and I am a survivor.

I am a four-year survivor of sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma. I was 29 and pregnant with our first child when I was diagnosed. After 12 hours of surgery, I lost my eye, eyelids, brow bone, nerves, tissue, and most importantly the majority of the tumor. I started my 30-day treatment of radiation and delivered my daughter seven weeks early so I could start my chemo….I want to celebrate and honor those who have fought, those who are fighting, and those who lost the fight.

 

Debbie
Monday, May 14, 2012

In all the years I have been involved with Relay, I never thought I would be the one wearing the purple shirt.

My 2008 New Year’s resolution was to try to as much get back to ‘normal’ as I possibly could. It had been three and a half years since our 13-year-old daughter Bailey had passed away unexpectedly. On January 23rd, I went for a regular checkup and my doctor found two cysts on my ovaries. I had them removed in February and was diagnosed with cancer in March…

My family has been involved with Relay For Life for the past nine years where I have served on the committee and as team captain. We Relay because so many of our family and friends have been diagnosed with cancer, and many of them have lost the battle. 

I am a survivor! Purple also happens to be Bailey’s favorite color, which I wear proudly.

 

Real People. Real stories. Even if you read 100 stories per day every day for a year,  you would still not be through all of them.

At Relay For Life events, communities across the globe come together to honor cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against a disease that has already taken too much. The funds you raise truly make a difference in the fight against cancer – just ask one of the nearly 14 million cancer survivors who will celebrate another birthday this year!

Relay teams camp out overnight and take turns walking or running around a track or path at a local high school, park, or fairground. Relay events are up to 24 hours in length and, because cancer never sleeps, each team is asked to have at least one participant on the track at all times.

 

Won’t you consider joining this year’s local event?

Relay For Life of Southern Portage