Sponsors will decorate their business in April to raise money for the American Cancer Society as the Relay for Life takes a new approach.
“We’ve seen a decline in attendance over the last several years and in an effort to try, nationwide, to bring more attendance, we’ve decided to take Relay on the Road,” Leigh Berry, who is on the Marion County Relay for Life committee, said.
The new concept means it won’t be held at one location, although businesses and individuals are still encouraged to have teams.
“Instead of having an event where the business would go and decorate a tent, the committee would be coming to the business,” Berry said. “They would decorate their business as a Relay tent site with the theme this year, which is superheroes. On the day of Relay for Life, which is Friday, April 27, the committee will come by and judge the tent site, T-shirt, everything we would do for Relay, but we would come to them. We also encourage others to visit the sites.”
After business hours, Berry said some of the traditional Relay for Life events will take place downtown. That includes a cancer survivor reception, games for children and possibly vendors.
“We will encourage some of the businesses that are downtown to stay open to show their tent sites. Possibly we’ll have a surprise vendor as a fundraiser. We just want people to gather for food and fellowship and honor our survivors,” Berry said.
In addition, other parts of the traditional Relay ceremony will be included like the hundreds of luminaries lit in memory of cancer patients down Main Street and Second Street.
“We’ll light those around 8 p.m. and leave them lit for people to come downtown and see. We will also still our sky lanterns and memorial lanterns,” Berry said. “It will be the same, but it will be different. We hope for a night of memories and fellowship.”
A team captains meeting is set for Thursday, Feb. 1, at Magnolia Grille at 5:30 p.m. Berry said they’re excited about the new format and would like people to come share their ideas so they can expand on it.
Another big event is also set to raise funds for the American Cancer Society: Dancing with the Stars on Saturday, May 19 at the Magnolia Grille.
“We need dancers, so if you want to be a dancer, we need you,” Berry said. “We’re asking our sponsors to also sponsor that event as well as our Relay event. We will incorporate a silent auction into that event. We’re really excited about the changes.”
