I guess the best way to start is….Why do I Relay? What is my story?

I find cancer to be one of the scariest words in the English language.  If you have not had cancer personally, then you’ve probably had a family member who has, or know someone that has been affected by it.  Cancer seems to be everywhere I go.  I’ve gotten to the point where everyday someone new that I’ve personally known is either diagnosed or has passed on.   

One of my most vivid childhood memories is, walking into the living room and seeing my mommy crying.  I was five and didn’t understand why my mommy was sad.  She explained that my best friend, my gramma, had breast cancer.  Again, I didn’t understand, all I knew was it made mommy sad, made gramma very sick, and that she could die. My grammas illness affected so many people, her family, her friends, the children that she drove home on the bus. As I grew older, a better understanding came, I live in this amazing small community in one of the most beautiful places in the world and everyone here is a member of my extend family. How can I stand by and watch my family suffer and do nothing to help? This is my part, this is my crusade, this is why I relay.

 My grandmother had been with us cancer free for 16 years…. Until this year.  She has recently been diagnosed with melanoma on her face.  To me this is frustrating and I can only imagine the frustration she feels.  How much pain can one family handle? This island sees cancer everyday.    

        Since working with Relay I have met many survivors, each and every one of their stories has touch my heart and made my reasons for relaying even more important to me.

        My reason for being here today is not just to tell my story but to ask you what it is you ARE going to do to join this fight. We as a community daily have opportunities to impact each others lives. We can’t put it off any longer. Please join me today in this continuous battle against a disease that affects us all here on Orcas and all over the world.