Community walks for cancer research

People walk around a track at the Relay for Life with the hope to find a cure to cancer. The money raised from this event goes to cancer research. Shalyn Tripp | Scroll Photography

Cancer survivors, their caregivers and teams from around the community walked on the Madison High School track in support of cancer research on June 25 at 6 p.m.

The event lasted until 6 a.m., and every walker was encouraged to walk the track until 
the end.

Matt Harris, a junior studying communication, helped announce the events of the relay.

“This is my first time doing the relay,” said Harris. “I was invited by the organizers to be an emcee. Two of my family members, my grandma and my cousin, have gone through cancer.”

The event started with a survivors' ceremony, where a few of the survivors performed special musical numbers and gave words of encouragement to other survivors and caregivers.

Bonnie Rammel, a cancer survivor since 1983 and team captain of the Walmart team, started the ceremony by playing a song on her guitar that gave her hope through the years.

“Twenty-seven years ago, I went into my doctor for an exam,” said Rammel. “My doctor called a couple of days later to run some more tests for cancer. When I found out it was cancer, I prayed to God. ‘I’m going to cling to you,’ I told Him. I want you to help me get 
through this.’”

Rammel was followed by Matt Pond, a brain cancer survivor, who sang “If I Only Had a Brain” from the “Wizard 
of Oz.”

After the song, the announcers called up a baseball player named Jace. Jace, known by some as Ironman Jace, found out he had leukemia in September of 2009, but he has not let it get him down. He lives by the words “Where there is a will, there is a way.”

He has read 875 books in the last month, and he hopes to reach 1,000 before he reaches the second grade.

Following the survivors' ceremony, the survivors and their caregivers were called up one by one to walk their first lap.

The oldest survivors present were Joline Parkinson, who has been a survivor since 1969, Jana Bishoff, since 1982, Bonnie Rammel, since 1983 and Robert Elliot, since 1992.

Each survivor varied in age from 4 to older than 70, and each had their own story to tell. Some of the walkers were walking for family members who have died from cancer. 

After the survivor lap, the teams were called up one by one.

Some of the teams were Chelle’s Angels, Cancer Sucks, the Walmart Wellness Warriors and Team Edward and Team Jacob (based off the Twilight movies). Members of Maurice’s Magic Moments wore purple capes.

Jocelyn Haeberly, a worker in the personnel department at Walmart, was team captain of the team Buffy the Cancer Slayer.

“The first relay I participated in was an accident,” said Haeberly. “I went into a meeting with Walmart’s Manager Mike Bullord, and when I came out, I was the team chair. My sister-in-law died of breast cancer 37 years ago, so I have a real motivation to do this.”

Each of the survivors of the event received a purple survivors' gift bag with a survivors' shirt, a hot chocolate mug, a note pad, a hope rock and a superhero duck. Marsha Bagley was one of the volunteers who helped give the bags away.

“This is my third year involved with the relay,” said Bagley. “I started doing this for friends, but now I do it for my little sister who was diagnosed with breast cancer.”

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