Hopkins Relay For Life hosted its annual fundraiser for the American Cancer Society from 4 p.m. until midnight on Friday. Founded in 1985, Relay For Life is a national group that supports community fundraising walks during which teams camp out overnight and take turns walking around a track field to raise money for the American Cancer Society.
Hopkins participants spent the night walking around Keyser Quad. The event started out with a survivor walk, during which cancer survivors led students in the first lap of the night. The ongoing relay was accompanied by a variety of dance performances and games. Campus groups, including fraternities, sororities and a cappella groups, set up booths selling food to encourage participants. The proceeds directly benefited cancer fundraising.
The president of Phi Mu, junior Mary Kate Turner, explained the event’s significance to her sorority.
“We’re here each year, and we usually have a bake sale,” Turner said. “It’s an event that I know means a lot to many of our sisters, so we like to try and have presence every year. ”
Luminaria, the capstone ceremony of Relay For Life, began at 9 p.m. During Luminaria, relay participants decorated the quad with paper lanterns as a tribute to those who have battled cancer. Music and speeches accompanied the event.
Freshman Samantha Hardy, a Relay For Life organizer, outlined the goals of the event.
“Our goals are mainly to celebrate survivors and raise money for cancer research,” Hardy said. “We have a lot of survivors that are coming here, and we hold a dinner for them in order to welcome them and celebrate everything that they’ve done. The money we raise for the American Cancer Society goes towards research and helps fund the Hope Lodge.”
Hope Lodge, a program sponsored by the American Cancer Society, provides cancer patients and their caregivers with affordable living accommodations. Every month, Hopkins Relay For Life committee members visit Baltimore’s Hope Lodge to cook dinner for cancer patients.
Hardy’s interests in Relay For Life began with her own family’s experiences with cancer.
“I’ve always done Relay For Life, and I think it’s a great cause,” she said. “I want to go into pediatric oncology, and that is because my younger brother is in remission currently for brain cancer and leukemia, and my mother is in remission for colon cancer and lung cancer as well.”
Hopkins Relay For Life holds smaller events throughout the year to fundraise, promote cancer awareness and advertise the event. Senior Pamela Saavedra, a Relay For Life organizer, has been planning Friday’s event since the beginning of the fall semester with assistance from the American Cancer Society.
“For the committee, we plan basically for the entire year to get this event together. We get a lot of help from the American Cancer Society,” Saavedra said. “They have a liaison that comes to our meetings and helps us coordinate to get the speakers, the teams, the people and the survivors.”
Saavedra joined Hopkins Relay For Life because of her prior experience working with children who have cancer.
“When I was in high school, St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital was really close to where I lived. A lot of the students that I tutored — there were two out of the eight... a high percentage of them suffered from cancer and passed away due to it,” Saavedra said. “It was really important to me to get involved with something that makes a difference not only research-wise, but also [something] that is willing to take care of patients.”
Victoria Fang, a sophomore in charge of the marketing and entertainment committee for Hopkins Relay For Life, said that they have raised $26,897.75 so far, with fundraising extending into the summer.
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