Sadly, most of us can probably name multiple people we know that suffer or have suffered from Cancer. The disease strikes often without warning or reason. It is one of the hardest battles to face and to watch a loved one's face. On a personal level, I know many people who have won and lost their battles to an array of different forms of Cancers. I lost my Grampy before I even knew him. The disease took away my grandfather and my dad's best friend. I relay in honor and remembrance of him and through Relay for Life, I feel the most connected to him.

I had volunteered for a lot of school events as a face painter. One year I was contacted by someone who asked if I was interested in helping at Relay for Life. It was my first time ever really learning about and seeing this event. There was so much love and laughter in the name of a great cause. Teams from all over the state pitched tents in their matching team outfits and sold items for donations. It looked like an amazing thing to be a part of so I got involved immediately.

Upon entering my freshman year at Stonehill College, I joined the planning committee for Relay for Life. There were subcommittees ranging from the Luminaria Ceremony to Survivorship, and Fundraising to Publicity. I worked publicity my freshman year and then became vice president of the subcommittee that was responsible for planning activities and entertainment. I don't think anything has been more rewarding in my life. Quite a lot of work goes on over the course of the year in preparation for the day of Relay. I collaborated with my subcommittee and members of the community often, got to really utilize my creative skills and learned a lot about organization and event planning - all are really useful life skills to develop and improve. The night gets filled with an abundance of activities dedicated to lifting spirits and joining the community together in both support and solidarity. It's wonderful to see so many people come together to have some fun in the name of supporting a great cause. Our campus has really fallen in love with the activities held - from Zumba to food eating contests. But the most favored activity is the Scavenger Hunt. Students join together in teams and run throughout campus taking team pictures and videos of them doing some wacky things such as sitting in a campus police car or singing 'happy birthday' to a stranger in their dorm room in an attempt to earn the most points.

I have loved being able to play such an active role in creating a fun environment for participants at the event but one of my other favorite Relay moments is the Luminaria Ceremony that really reminds us who we are fighting for. Every person affected by Cancer is so much more than a statistic. They are mothers and fathers, grandparents, aunts and uncles, children and friends. The Luminaria Ceremony lets us put faces to the disease. A slide show of pictures shares the stories of loved ones and illustrates how many people are affected by Cancer. There is silence and there are tears as we see the faces of families, friends and even strangers illuminate the screen. Friends hold onto each other for support as participants walk in silence along the path illuminated by Luminaria bags, written out in honor and memory of loved ones. The ceremony is nothing short of powerful.

In addition to planning the Relay event, committee members join teams with friends and individually and collectively fundraise donations that go towards the American Cancer Society. The donations go towards a number of things which include: lodging and transportation for cancer patients and caregivers, research, and support. I was amazed to see how many friends and people I didn't even personally know, were willing to make a donation to me and my team. In this past year at Stonehill College, our campus raised $54,701. I was blown away by how much money a small campus like Stonehill was able to raise. This is no small amount, and this isn't even taking into account the number of other college campuses and towns that host Relay for Life events.

Relay has been one of the most rewarding things I have been fortunate to be a part of. I have worked with so many incredibly dedicated and passionate people I have ever met. I have also met some of the most inspirational people ever, from Cancer survivors to caregivers. As a committee, we have visited the Hope Lodge located in Boston MA. The Hope Lodge provides living arrangements to patients receiving treatment, and their caregiver, to alleviate issues such as traveling. Our committee has visited the Hope Lodge to cook dinner for the guests and provide desserts. We even got to sit and eat with many of the guests and learned some of their stories. The guests gave us a round of applause and each person as they approached our serving table graciously thanked us, explaining how much this all meant to them. To me, it seemed like such a simple task but to them, it meant the world. I have never met more kind, grateful and courageous individuals who, despite what they were facing, had such genuine smiles and positive hearts.

I strongly encourage anyone and everyone to join Relay for Life, whether it is as a participant on the day of or as a member of the event planning committee. Relay brings together a community and shows Cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers that they are not alone in the fight. Relay for Life raises more than donations but also raises awareness, support and, most importantly, hope.