Relay for Life hits Boston University this Saturday for a night-long extravaganza of entertainment and commemoration of the fight against cancer.
“Relay is an overnight party that unites the BU community under one roof, for one night, supporting one cause,” said College of Arts and Sciences junior Alan Hoang, president of Colleges Against Cancer and co-chair of the Relay For Life of BU Planning Committee.
Teams of friends, families, peers and co-workers will get together at Relay to celebrate the effort that they’ve put into fundraising over the last few months, he said.
“[Teams] take turns walking around the track since cancer never sleeps and neither will we,” he said.
Hoang said the night will be divided into three parts: celebrate, remember and fight back.
“This means that at Relay, we celebrate survivors and the hope they give us, remember loved ones lost, and empower each other to fight back against cancer,” he said.
The “celebrate” portion of the relay will kick off with an opening ceremony featuring the Dear Abbeys, Assistant Dean of Students David Zamojski and instructor Dr. Trudi Feinstein.
Survivors and virtual survivors &-relayers walking in the place of survivors who could not attend the event&-will walk the first lap in what is called the survivor lap, he said.
Relayers will then engage in the “remember” portion of the evening by reflecting on their own cancer experiences in what Hoang called the “Luminaria Ceremony.”
“[This is] when all the lights go out and the track is illuminated with luminaria bags, each dedicated in honor or in memory of someone who has fought cancer,” he said.
Finally, at 5:45 a.m., the organizers will announce the grand total raised for the American Cancer Society at the closing ceremony.
There are 1,100 people currently signed up for the Relay, he said.
“Our ideal goal is to unite the entire BU community at Relay, all 30,000 plus of us,” he said.
Last year, BU’s first year hosting the event, the Relay had almost 1,000 participants and raised over $92,000, for which the American Cancer Society named BU the Nationwide Number One Youth Rookie Event of the year.
This year, the group hopes to get 1,250 participants and raise $125,000, he said.
CAS freshman Amber Glass said she plans on participating in Relay this weekend.
“I always wanted to do it, but wasn’t sure,” she said. “Then a giant group of friends of mine at BU were going to do it, so I decided to go for it. I think it’ll be fun. It’s a really great cause.”
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