Why I Relay ...
Editor’s Note: As a lead-up to this weekend’s Chenango County Relay for Life (July 15-16 at the Chenango County Fairgrounds), we’ve asked several participants to share their personal stories with Evening Sun readers. This is Why I Relay ...
Amanda Nightengale
I first participated in Relay For Life with my mom when I was younger and I had always wanted to do a team. Now I relay for mainly one reason, but there have been many things that I have encountered that have made my decision to relay more important to me now more than ever.
I relay because I feel as if it is one of the best ways to give back to a society as a whole, because more people than we think are affected by cancer in some way. Watching some families in my small town of Oxford dealing with the battle against cancer was very eye opening. Many of us don’t know what we can do to help these families other than supporting them. When a family that is very close to my heart was affected by cancer and my family felt the affects of this horrible illness is when I realized I needed to help make a change in society.
It was the loss of my neighbor whom I called grandpa that really hit home and made me want to do relay. He had been diagnosed with leukemia and fought it as long as he could, but when we found out it was near the end it began to take a toll on not only his family but his close friends that he had. It was very heart-wrenching to see someone you saw your whole life growing up as one of the strongest people you had ever seen, suddenly debilitated by cancer. He was not only a loved husband, brother, uncle, and grandpa but a friend. He is why I relay now.
Amanda Utter
My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer when I was a senior in high school. I can remember being at Great Adventure standing on a pay phone and getting the news. She fought hard and stayed positive always. I started going to Relay For Life with her because I wasn’t able to support and help her when she was sick. I was never part of a team but always made sure to purchase items in the store, luminaries, daffodil days and support anyway I could. I usually just walked the track and spent that special time with my mom.
My mom went 12 years cancer free. She missed one appointment and her next one got the news that she had breast cancer again. Once again she stayed strong and did what she had to. Now we are pleased to be counting cancer free again.
I met a group of great ladies who have also been affected by cancer. They all wanted to help. So we formed a team for the first time. I am the team captain. It has been new and I see all the hard work put into the Relay For Life. It is a great thing to come together and raise money for a cure. I am very proud of my mother’s strength. I couldn’t nurse her. That is my sister’s place but I am doing what I can now to help people in the future.
Anonymous
On a beautiful day my mother, who was 37, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. I was two years old. This news devastated her but she was a person filled with hope and a desire to live. She did not see it as a death sentence, just another obstacle to overcome. She kept a positive attitude through surgeries, radiation and multiple rounds of chemotherapy for two years.
By that time I remember hearing the word cancer a lot at this point. I didn’t know what it meant, but I knew it was making her sick. Yet, when I was going on my last trip with her to Disneyland, her laughter and smile as bright as that California sun gave no indication that she had literally six months to live.
Finally, one snowy day, I said good night and good-bye to my Mom one last time. Still, sick as she was, she hugged and kissed me with a smile on her face. When I woke up the next morning, after a two year battle, my mother was gone. I was four years old.
Despite everything that happened, my Mom never, ever gave up hope! I believe that she instilled this in me. Now in my twenties, I relay for her. I’ve walked now for three years and have never given up hope that one day we will find a cure, that one day no child will ever have to lose their parent, uncle, aunt, cousin, brother or sister at an early age due to cancer. Relay doesn’t just help the American Cancer Society, it empowers us to do awesome things and find strength within ourselves. When you relay you give others hope and are able to help one another, not just on a track but in people’s everyday lives as you … celebrate. Remember. Fight back.
Amanda Nightengale
I first participated in Relay For Life with my mom when I was younger and I had always wanted to do a team. Now I relay for mainly one reason, but there have been many things that I have encountered that have made my decision to relay more important to me now more than ever.
I relay because I feel as if it is one of the best ways to give back to a society as a whole, because more people than we think are affected by cancer in some way. Watching some families in my small town of Oxford dealing with the battle against cancer was very eye opening. Many of us don’t know what we can do to help these families other than supporting them. When a family that is very close to my heart was affected by cancer and my family felt the affects of this horrible illness is when I realized I needed to help make a change in society.
It was the loss of my neighbor whom I called grandpa that really hit home and made me want to do relay. He had been diagnosed with leukemia and fought it as long as he could, but when we found out it was near the end it began to take a toll on not only his family but his close friends that he had. It was very heart-wrenching to see someone you saw your whole life growing up as one of the strongest people you had ever seen, suddenly debilitated by cancer. He was not only a loved husband, brother, uncle, and grandpa but a friend. He is why I relay now.
Amanda Utter
My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer when I was a senior in high school. I can remember being at Great Adventure standing on a pay phone and getting the news. She fought hard and stayed positive always. I started going to Relay For Life with her because I wasn’t able to support and help her when she was sick. I was never part of a team but always made sure to purchase items in the store, luminaries, daffodil days and support anyway I could. I usually just walked the track and spent that special time with my mom.
My mom went 12 years cancer free. She missed one appointment and her next one got the news that she had breast cancer again. Once again she stayed strong and did what she had to. Now we are pleased to be counting cancer free again.
I met a group of great ladies who have also been affected by cancer. They all wanted to help. So we formed a team for the first time. I am the team captain. It has been new and I see all the hard work put into the Relay For Life. It is a great thing to come together and raise money for a cure. I am very proud of my mother’s strength. I couldn’t nurse her. That is my sister’s place but I am doing what I can now to help people in the future.
Anonymous
On a beautiful day my mother, who was 37, was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. I was two years old. This news devastated her but she was a person filled with hope and a desire to live. She did not see it as a death sentence, just another obstacle to overcome. She kept a positive attitude through surgeries, radiation and multiple rounds of chemotherapy for two years.
By that time I remember hearing the word cancer a lot at this point. I didn’t know what it meant, but I knew it was making her sick. Yet, when I was going on my last trip with her to Disneyland, her laughter and smile as bright as that California sun gave no indication that she had literally six months to live.
Finally, one snowy day, I said good night and good-bye to my Mom one last time. Still, sick as she was, she hugged and kissed me with a smile on her face. When I woke up the next morning, after a two year battle, my mother was gone. I was four years old.
Despite everything that happened, my Mom never, ever gave up hope! I believe that she instilled this in me. Now in my twenties, I relay for her. I’ve walked now for three years and have never given up hope that one day we will find a cure, that one day no child will ever have to lose their parent, uncle, aunt, cousin, brother or sister at an early age due to cancer. Relay doesn’t just help the American Cancer Society, it empowers us to do awesome things and find strength within ourselves. When you relay you give others hope and are able to help one another, not just on a track but in people’s everyday lives as you … celebrate. Remember. Fight back.
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