May 3, 2002 By Steve Ostrosky 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – Several hundred Greene County residents will don their walking shoes and spend a portion of their weekend raising money for cancer research, prevention and programs during the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. The relay will be held at the track at Waynesburg Central High School from 10 a.m. Saturday to 10 a.m. Sunday and will begin with an opening ceremony led by WTAE-TV sports reporter Andrew Stockey.

Saturday morning’s opening also will feature a “Survivors Lap,” in which at least 75 cancer survivors will walk the first lap of the relay.

Margie Smith, income development specialist with the cancer society’s Greene County chapter, said 41 teams are registered for the event and more than 750 participants are scheduled to take their turn walking or running around the track, all to raise funds for Greene County cancer programs and for national cancer research.

While the event brought in $76,125 in 2001, just the third year it was held in Greene County, organizers hope to raise $86,000 this year.

This year’s theme for the relay is “Fairy Tales,” so Smith said each campsite will be decorated in the theme of fairy tale characters, with some groups taking their creativity to another level. Along with the fairy tale theme, activities will take place all day for adults, children, walkers and visitors.

The three adult and youth teams that raise the most money will receive awards, as will the best campsite, according to Smith.

Along with fun activities, the event will feature awareness programs and some somber reminders of the effects of cancer. A luminaria ceremony will be held Saturday at 9 p.m. to honor those living with cancer and those who died from it, Smith said.

A pre-luminaria event will take place at 8 p.m. Saturday, and Mass will be held at 11 p.m., led by the Rev. Jack Batykefer of St. Ann Church in Waynesburg.

Also on Saturday, cancer control specialist Mary Ann Ealy will offer a “Tell-A-Friend” training session at 3 p.m. at the Greene County Vocational-Technical School. Smith said the program trains people to contact a list of others to remind them to get their mammograms, and it will work to ensure early detection.

“This is a really good opportunity to get together and train more people,” she said.

Teams representing Greene County employees, area churches, schools, businesses, families and friends are all participating in the relay, and while the event can be enjoyable, the effect that it has does not go unnoticed, Smith said.

“This can bring out so much emotion in all kinds of different ways. The care, love and support is overwhelming,” she said. “People also take the time to remember the people we have lost to cancer and how important it is to continue the fight. We will never quit until there is a cure or we can prevent all cancer.”

With a positive community response, Smith said she is hoping for the best relay ever in terms of money raised and in support for the efforts of the cancer society.

Teams already have been established, but people are welcome to stop by the high school throughout the 24 hours to learn more and to make a donation, she said.