I am so proud of my little Relayers! Four out of our five kids are Relaying this year (two as team captains!) -- the baby just turned two; we'll put her on the team next year! : )
This past weekend, the kids created t-shirts and painted rocks with suns, moon, and "RFL" that they are giving in exchange for donations. Their fundraising campaign is "Relay Rocks!" They put all of the rocks in a the red wagon and went door to door. The only crisis was when one of the rocks got broken in half. No worries, though, they just decided to make it a "two for one" deal. Cute.
All of our kids love Relay For Life and always look forward to being a part of it. I wish I could bottle their enthusiasm and excitement for helping fight back against cancer. In fact, our oldest daughter loves it so much that when she grows up she wants to "work for Relay For Life -- or Krispy Kreme." Hey, when you're in 4th grade, it's a definite toss up.
The kids have been Relaying all of their lives. The results? Well, since my oldest son's first Relay in 1997, survival rates have gone from just over 50% to nearly 70%. We've seen: the development of a pill that can cure leukemia; the development of the first cancer vaccine; increased clean air legislation; and a reduction in the actual number of cancer deaths (just to name a few things).
A few weeks ago, I attended the Florida Division Relay Summit -- and it was fantastic! Before my flight home, I stopped into an airport restaurant for dinner. As I was paying with my ACS purchase card, the waitress asked if I worked for the American CAncer Society. I said, "yes" and she then told me her story...