Survivors are the backbone of Relay. Do you have any great ideas to honor Survivors at your Relay? Share your ideas in the Survivorship forum
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July 27, 2006 - 1:17pm
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How To Honor Survivors Pre Event, Event & Post Event
Hi
PRE EVENT:
We are 1 + 2 + 1. 1 County + 2 RFL = 1 Mission. We hold a coutny-wide pre-RFL dinner, to honor all Cancer Survivors within our County. Our 1st was in 2006, we had 1 event in May and the other in June. The "pre RFL" dinner was held about 2 weeks prior to the 1at event. We invited all cancer survivors within the county, we provided them with information on both events, dinner, guest speakers, a comedian and games. Of course there were great giveaways! You can send invitations to every Survivor within your data base. We also, had Tony B. our official RFL DJ and and Co-Chair for the Elkhart/Goshen Event. I like to advertise through press releases to the local Newspapers, TV anbd Radio stations as well. Our local Cancer Center provided the meal. You can also encougare your cancer treatment centers, hospitals and infusion centers to pass out invites. It was GREAT.
EVENT:
2006 was our 1st year. We had a Survivor Registration tent for Survivors and Care Givers to register. They both received a Survivor or Caregiver pin and the Survivors received their T-Shirts. We had a Survivor Reception tent with snacks. During the opening ceremonies Cancer Survivors were honored with a Butterfly release during the 1st victory lap. (Since this was our 1st year we did not do this but, as a past RFL Chair, I like to have a Survivor program just before the Survivor dinner. Have a guest speaker and some form of entertainment, commedian, magician etc.) We then had a Survivor dinner and a guest speaker, he was a Care Giver to his wife who is a Survivor. At Luminaria we had a candle lighting ceremony with a Worship Group to provide music. Survivors were honored as they took their victory walk. At closing ceremonies we once again honored Survivors with a Butterfly Release as they took their victory walk.
Post Event:
Invite all registered Survivors to your wrap up meeting and honor them. Show them recognition. Sending Christmas & Birthday cards is another great way to keep in touch with Survivors year round.
Remember once you have had your Post Event Wrap Up you have to switch into Pre-Event mode.
Example: Event Relay June 2007 the time between Event and Wrap up is Post Event. Wrap Up July 2007. August 2007-May 2008 becomes Pre Event, June 2008 Event, Wrap Up July 2008 and the cycle goes on and on and on.
At all Team Captain meetings & Committee meetings I ask all Survivors to stand and we applaud them. Recognition can be something as small as applause.
Also, remind everyone to continue to raise funds for the current year until the deadline of August 31st. September 1st starts fundraising for the next year and it is never too early to start raising funds.
Becky Burke, Elkhart County, Middlebury/Bristol
Honoring Survivors/Survivorship Activity Ideas At Relay
Some of the nicest ideas i have heard for honoring survivors/survivorship are (in addition to the great ones on this post others have shared)
∑ Hold a Survivor's Breakfast or Dinner - Several months before your event, hold a survivors' breakfast or dinner and invite all the support groups in your area, post signs at local hospitals, etc., post signs at doctor's offices, and so on. Invite your committee and seat at least one of them with each of the tables of survivors who come... Talk to them about Survivorship and Relay, and see if they will be involved! Some other things to do to make it more interesting are:
∑ Hold a Luminaria Ceremony
∑ Have a pinning ceremony
SURVIVORSHIP ACTIVITIES AT EVENT
∑ Adopt a Survivor - Have your teams adopt a survivor - make them a guest at their tent site, etc. (especially if the survivor is not a participant with a team of their own) - this will make them involved throughout the event, not just at the reception and survivor's lap!
∑ Drive the more fragile survivors around the track in a golf cart! - This will make it less indimidating for them to participate (thanks to Laurie Needham)
∑ Have a Kids Conquering Cancer Lap - After your Survivors Lap, have the Kids who are survivors stay on the track, cheer them, then let ALL kids join them next lap.
∑ Links representing their years of survivorship - Have paperclips, paper loops, etc. such that each of the links represents a survivor. Have it displayed at the survivor booth. - Thanks to Michael and http://relayamerica.com for this great idea!
∑ Paper Quilt - "rather than sewn squares, I'm asking survivors to prepare a "quilt square" on regular letter-size paper - they'll be laminated, patched together & mounted on a sturdy, permanent backing, so we can add to it year-to-year." (thanks to Amanda!)
∑ Rocking Chair Tent - thanks to Kim and the Woodbridge Relay for this great idea! - "This year at the Woodbridge Relay, we had a Rocking Chair tent set up for those who could not walk but still wanted to help their team out. We clocked a normal lap, set up a battery operated clock in the tent. Placed the tent right on the edge of the track so the rocking chairs were touching it. So a person with disabilities or going through treatment could do their part. It was a huge success! We were loaned the rocking chairs by Cracker Barrel (So willing to help) we had 6 chairs and a few girl scouts on hand to get anything they needed. It was wonderful, they even did the hokie pokey...very funny." What a great way to involve your survivors and others that can't walk but want to help!
∑ Spotlight Dance - "I'm planning on doing a "spotlight" dance just for the survivors, since we'll be having live entertainment & ample space for a dance floor." (thanks to Amanda!)
∑ Tree of Hope - Thanks for this great idea to Danielle D! Have a Survivor Tree of Hope, and have survivors bring ornaments to hang on it!
∑ Recognizing the Family and Children of Survivors - Thanks to Jenjen84 for this idea! "I am in charge of getting the survivor things in order this year. And while I'm hard at work with that I have decided to try and do something a little different this year. I am a child of a cancer survivor (my mom is chairperson of the local Relay) and I always felt as if people didn't understand that the cancer doesn't just affect the person who has it, it also affects their family, especially the kids. So this year I am trying to raise money to get the children of the survivors a little something to let them know that we understand that it affects them too"
∑ King and Queen of Relay @ Survivor Dinner - Nash County Relay (held in Rocky Mount, NC) chose a King and Queen at the Survivor Dinner this year. They were crowned and given a purple cape and at the relay on Friday night of the relay they were announced as the King & Queen when the survivors were announced and they led the lap for the survivors. This added to the opening of the relay and also made the survivors feel more important. It went over really well and we plan on doing this every year. (Thanks to Retha Pappas for this idea) - How to Pick the King And Queen - To keep it fair, choose each survivor that has been a survivor the longest... Do it as a icebreaker without announcing it - have them stand in a row by the # of years that they have been a survivor... Then have each of them say their name and # of years, from the least to the most... Clap for each one... Finally, have your survivor chair or a staff or celebrity or MC come out and crown the Relay King and Queen as the man and woman who have been survivors the longest! (suggested by Ramesh, Baltimore, MD)
∑ Have survivors walk thru a balloon arch or ornamental arch and/or break a "paper banner" - (thanks to Laurie Needham)
∑ Wall of Memories - A beautiful "wall" that people write messages on at Relay... The backing can be plywood, and you can spread big sheets of butcher paper across it! A great survivor activity to honors those fighting and remember those we have lostl! This wonderful idea comes to us from Hawaii...
∑ Torch Relay - This is a great survivorship idea patterned after the Olympics - basically, you have your survivors and caregivers (or if you want, other leaders of your Relay, too) first light the torch, and then take it on a parade... Some events take a loop of your city (with news coverage following along), and then return to your Relay where the torch is kept lit all night... It makes a lap of the track with a survivor for the survivors lap, a caregiver for the caregiver's lap, and every half hour, it is passed from one survivor to the next, to keep it going all night long to always remind us of the survivors who we Relay for and those who we remember who have lost the battle with cancer... in the morning - a large torch at the event can be lit to commemorate the completion of "relaying". Each event does it a little differently,
Hope you like these, and thanks to all those who shared them with me.
Ramesh Moorthy Webmaster, acsrelay.org, Ideas for Volunteers
Blogging about Relay at acsrelay blog
Volunteer Content Advisor, SA Division Relay Web
johnson count relay, IN
At our relay we have the survivors tell us in advance how many years survivor they are and then we create a ribbon chain with the total years survived for our group. As you can image the chain gets very large. We have the survivors carry the chain around the track with them and everyone is always amazed at how it grows with each year. Also we do announce how many years of survival we have!
Tomorrow Wednesday my Mom
Tomorrow Wednesday my Mom will have to start all over again chemotherapy at the Amos center in Columbus Ga. I will be there like always, being supportive all the way. I have a tendency of watching everything that goes on around me so I can tell you, yes y
Great ideas for Survivorship
Several events have done Hands of Hope banners and shared them with me... :
• Grand Rapids, MI: “This past June we ( survivors too!!) took a white sheet- got a gallon of bright pink and one gallon of purple paint , rollers and thin latex ( and non) gloves. We asked each survivor to put on a glove, choose a color and we rolled the paint onto their gloved palm. They then placed their hand straight down onto the sheet and pulled it back up. Then with a sharpie they signed their name and how long they have been a survivor. It went over so well. Next year- we will do a new one- but we will hang the old one for all to see. For the survivor lap we will pin the sheet up ( so as not to drag it) and lead our lap with the sheet. At the top- right in marker 2006 ( then your town) Hands of Hope.” – A great ideas thanks to Pam and the Grand Rapids Relay For Life!
• Greater Portland Relay For Life – From their website: “We also encourage every survivor to help us continue a tradition we started back in 2001, which is the annual survivor banner! Simply put on a non-Latex glove (which we provide), dip your hand in some purple paint, and press your hand on the banner. The result, as you can see from the pictures on this page, is something that is beautiful, meaningful, and truly inspirational to us all. It's something we are very proud of, and we hope you are as well!”
You can see pictures at:
Relay Success Stories
Ramesh Moorthy
Webmaster, acsrelay.org, Ideas & Information for Volunteers by Volunteers.
Blogging about Relay at acsrelay.blogspot.com
Volunteer Content Advisor, South Atlantic Division Relay Link Extranet
Volunteer, Baltimore, MD
rflvolunteer@gmail.com
Rock your laps
At our Survivor area in Rohnert park, Ca, we have a shaded area with 6-8 rocking chairs (and gliders too) donated for the day by team & committee members with a big sign that says "Rock your Lap"...
this is where those survivors going through chemo (or for whatever reason) can't make it around the track can sit and "rock" their lap in the shade. It's on the edge of the track so they can cheer-on the walking survivors as they come around. I've had very good feedback about this special area that it really makes those survivors feel they are still participating in the survivor lap.
It also provides a forum for those in treatment to not feel so alone as they are surrounded by others also in treatment.
Survivor Lap
In Goochland, VA we had a golf kart decked out that drove around survivors that went through chemo. It was almost like a limo ride around the track! The survivor that rode this year really enjoyed it and on the care giver lap there was enough room for her daughter and mother.
ROCK YOUR LAP
Love your idea. We added rocking chairs around the track for people who wanted to participate but couldn't necessarily walk the track. What a marvelous idea to have a special shaded area. It gives me new thoughts of how we might accomodate this somewhere by or near the survivor tent.
Thanks a million.
JoJo Cousino
A couple of things we do
We have a very large number of survivors here in Gwinnett CO GA who are unable to make it around our 6/10 of a mile track so we've set up a Survivor Observation area near our start line. Those that feel too frail to make around the track take a seat in the shade under a couple of 10x20 canopy tents, help themselves to the cold water available in the iced down tubs of water, and enjoy all the tears and cheers of the Victory Lap. It's usually hot in May for our Relay so this is a welcome relief for all those who take advantage of the covered area. After the Survivor Lap, our Youth Survivors Relay Team uses one of the canopy tents as their campsite and congregation spot for the night.
We are unable to have reserved parking for all the survivors that come to our Relay so we have an offsite parking area at the St. Lawrence Catholic Church our Gwinnett County Fairgrounds Relay site where survivors can park and be bussed to the fairgrounds. We do have some golf carts and volunteers from various Relay teams who escort the survivors from the shuttle bus drop off area to the Survivor Registration and Reception areas.
Survivor Ideas
This was only our 2nd year, so we had many new survivors (from 14 to 105). We held a Survivor meeting prior to the relay. It let us fill them in on what relay is. We were able to ask what they'd like to see done e.g. music, food, etc and it allowed our survivors an opportunity to take part and get involved.
One of the best survivor ideas out of the meeting was V.I.P. parking. I mailed out packets with event itineraries, field maps, ACS and committee POCs, and purple V.I.P. parking passes for their windshields. The parking lot closest to the field was reserved for them and we had attendants ready to assist if needed.
We recognized the newest diagnosed (2wks) and then the longest survivor (30+yrs) through donations from local businesses. We did it in that order to show that there's hope. We kept hearing "We didn't realize we had so much community support".
We received so many positive comments! We even recruited volunteers for next year. Who better to plan a celebration for survivors than survivors?!?!
Rachel DeMone
14 to 105? How did u do that?
Wow, I would love to know what you did to get that kind of growth in survivors in one year. WAY to go!!!! Anything special that you can attribute this to? (I also emailed you privately) Thanks so much and keep on rockin - lets see you add another 105, ha ha. Oops you just might I am guessing
As long as I know I have love, I can make it. - Stevie Wonder
2 Great Ideas
I love these Ideas....
Floats! – Some survivors may not be able to make it around the track. During survivor registration ask to see if a survivor will need additional help during the ceremony. Decorate as many golf carts as you can to bring survivors around during the opening lap. Make the opening lap a parade, with the golf carts as your floats!
Adopt-a-Survivor Program – often times a survivor may come and walk the opening lap and then go home. They are missing the whole feeling of a Relay from the team’s point of view. Encourage those teams involved with the event to adopt one, two, three …survivors for the night. After the opening lap and reception, invite your adoptee over to hang out and participate for a period of time. Reminder calls are made from the Survivor committee to all registered survivors, this is a great time to let them know that “XYZ” team would like to invite them to visit with their team after the reception (and before if they are able). The team captain may also call – if all right with the registered survivor – just to personally invite them to join their team.
Survivor of the Week
I staff mostly very small, rural Relay Events--so getting the local newspaper on board isn't a difficult task. One thing that a lot of the papers in my areas do is to honor a different survivor each week with a small article and picture in the newspaper. This is a great way to introduce the community to Relay, as well as making those survivors feel truly special! We had survivors calling us all the time asking how they can get their story in the paper! We usually start this the week before our Relay For Life Kickoff by asking one of our committee members who is a survivor to be the first featured survivor! We've never had one decline the offer yet! This offers those special people in my communities a chance to tell their story, as well as providing great publicity leading up to our Relay events.
Christina
ACS Staff--Louisiana
Joined: 2006-04-18