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Happenings in the Keweenaw Peninsula June 19, 2003 Text © 2003 Michele Anderson. Photos © 2002 Laurie Curran. Reprinted with permission.

Relay for Life to begin with Hancock-Houghton run for Cancer Society

HOUGHTON -- Escorted by Hancock and Houghton police, 17 relay runners will kick off the eighth annual, 24-hour Copper Country Relay for Life fundraiser for the American Cancer Society with a run from Hancock to Houghton starting at 1 p.m. on Friday, June 20. The runners will pass the Relay for Life flag to one another along a route through Hancock and Houghton, ending up at the Houghton High School track for the planting of the flag at about 2:30 p.m.

This Flag Run is a new event this year. It begins at Northwoods Trading Post on Quincy Street in Hancock, continues down to the Citgo Station and back up Hancock Street to the Portage Lift Bridge. Runners, one at a time, with a police escort front and back, will cross the bridge and continue along Montezuma Avenue through Houghton to Franklin Square, up Shelden Avenue and then along M-26 to Sharon Avenue. They will turn up Sharon to Gundlach Road and finish in front of the Houghton High School track, where the Relay for Life events will take place.

Activities at the track begin at 1 p.m. Friday and continue for 24 hours. Participants take turns walking, jogging or running around the track to raise money for the American Cancer Society and to raise awareness of cancer and the Society’s work.

Teams of families, friends and work associates honor cancer victims and survivors in the June 2002 Relay for Life at the Houghton High School track. (Photo © 2002 Laurie Curran)

"The main thing that the Relay stands for is survivorship," said Kathy Archambeau, Relay co-chair and cancer survivor. "The main purpose of the Relay is to provide education -- to make people aware of the importance of early detection in all cancers."

Archambeau noted many cancers are 90 to 98 percent curable if they're found in time.

"One of the most frightening phrases I hear is, 'I'm afraid of what I might find' -- instead of being afraid of not finding it in time," she added.

This year's Relay will include 38 teams of participants. While this is fewer than last year since several teams have consolidated, Archambeau expects the event to attract about the same number of participants as the 2002 Relay, which netted $122,568 for the Cancer Society, well above the goal of $100,000. Of the Upper Peninsula relays, Archambeau noted, the Copper Country Relay for Life has raised the highest amount of funds for the Cancer Society in five years out of seven.

Kathy Archambeau, left, and Barb Banfield, Relay for Life co-chairs this year, take a lap in the rain during the 2002 Relay at the Houghton High School track. (Photo © 2002 Laurie Curran)

Co-chair Barb Banfield -- Archambeau's cousin, friend, co-worker and fellow survivor -- said the team captains have spent many long hours organizing their teams and fundraising, while participants have worked hard as well. Event Manager Rick Freeman has done an outstanding job, she added.

"The committee has done an absolutely awesome job of organizing this," Banfield noted.

Two new events for Friday evening will be a Native American Honor Dance, followed by the Torch of Hope.

At 9 p.m. members of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) and Our Four Thunders Drums will present an Honor Dance.

The Torch Run will introduce the Luminaria Ceremony. At 9:30 p.m. cancer survivor Ben Ruohonen will take the Relay for Life flag and run it into the entrance of the track, where he will meet his parents, Dorothy and Jay Ruohonen. Dorothy is campsite manager and map maker. Ben will trade the flag for the Torch of Hope from his parents and start running around the track. Team members (all cancer survivors -- adults and children) will take the torch and relay it around the track to light candles. The last person to run with the torch will use it to light the Light of Hope at the Center Stage..

During the 2002 Luminaria Ceremony, luminaria along the track honor cancer victims, while others spell out "Hope" in the bleachers. (Photo © 2002 Laurie Curran)

The Luminaria Ceremony allows individuals to honor and commemorate cancer victims with light. Luminaria will be on sale in the main tent area from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday. Art materials will be available to decorate them. The cost is $10.

Participants decorate and personalize their luminaria to honor and commemorate cancer victims. (Photo © 2002 Laurie Curran)

The Relay for Life offers events for all ages, including an ice cream social, silent auction, Trick or Treat, "Pajama Jam Fashion Show," "Bedtime Storytime," campfire music, Hula Hoop Lap, Bubble Lap, scavenger hunt and other activities.

A young participant in the 2002 Relay enjoys a ride during the Bubble Lap. (Photo © 2002 Laurie Curran)

Anyone wishing to contribute by mailing a donation should make the check payable to the American Cancer Society and mail it to Framed by Kathy, 314 Shelden Ave., Houghton, MI 49931.

"Everybody has been touched by cancer," said Archambeau. "Maybe someday the Relay for Life will just be a celebration that we've found all the cures for all the cancers."

Read the detailed 2003 Relay for Life Schedule of Events. 

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