Community Corner
Relay for Life Event Kicks-Off at Lincoln-Way East
Relay for Life teams in the Lincoln-Way communities kick-off Friday at Lincoln-Way East High School.
The Lincoln-Way communities are ready for the Relay for Life, a cancer fundraiser and awareness campaign by the American Cancer Society.
It begins June 7 with a survivors dinner, hosted by Little Joe's Restaurant, 9645 Lincoln Way Lane, at 5 p.m. at Lincoln-Way East High School, 201 Colorado Ave. Entertainment will be provided by Nino. It's a 12-hour-long event that ends at 5 a.m. on June 8.
Opening ceremonies begin at 6:15 p.m. with the Boy Scout Color Guard and the National Anthem. The laps around the football are many throughout the remaining 11 hours, but the first lap is the most emotionally-driven one. It's the survivors lap, which is followed by a caregivers lap and a parade of teams lap.
The evening is flush with activities, including a hero lap run by police and firefighters and a tribute lap. The luminara ceremony begins at 10 p.m. There are movies and dance routines, pom pom presentations and more.
"The event helps spread cancer awareness, celebrate the lives of survivors, remember those who lost their lives to cancer and unite a community in the fight against cancer," said Amy Jo Steinbruecker, spokesperson for the American Cancer Society.
What it means to one cancer survivor
For Frankfort's Mary Van Pelt, 52, Relay for Life has a special meaning. Having been diagnosed with Stage III ovarian cancer in 2005, she knows what it's like to be afraid, strong, vulnerable and loved through a physical and emotional roller coaster.
She is one of the approximately 5 percent who survive this kind advanced cancer. Van Pelt has been cancer-free for eight years. "I'm very blessed."
Van Pelt, a mother of two, describes what once started as a nightmare as more like a journey now. Without the help of the American Cancer Society's women's health care advocacy program, she never would have been able to shift out of her immediate HMO region for intense treatment at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. The regulations for an HMO are tough to overcome, and she had nowhere near the strength to fight the bureaucracy, she recalled.
Together with the recommendation from her gynecologist, the American Cancer Society practically moved mountains so that she could get the treatment that was identified as best for her situation.
In the first year after her chemotherapy, Van Pelt participated in Relay for Life. At the five-year mark, she felt as though she'd really won the battle against cancer. She beat the odds. That's when she steeped herself into helping Relay for Life. She became an advocate. Today, she is the chairperson for the Frankfort-Mokena Relay for Life.
It's a demanding schedule for a volunteer, said Van Pelt, who works full-time as a social worker. Still, it's a work of love. She organizes teams to raise funds, tells her story of survival and does a lot of genuine hand-holding.
The teams in Frankfort-Mokena
There are 38 teams and 376 participants in Frankfort-Mokena. They've raised $87,096 so far, she boasted.
The teams in New Lenox
There are 29 teams and 191 participants. They've raised $45, 105 so far.
The Relay for Life event in New Lenox is planned for July 12 at Lincoln-Way West High School, 21701 Gougar Road.
For information about local Relay for Life activities; visit the website for Frankfort Mokena and New Lenox.
Donations are accepted year-round.
........................................................................................................................
Get news alerts and Facebook updates from these Lincoln-Way Patch sites:
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
