LIMA, OH (WLIO) - Friday night was Lima's biggest American Cancer Society fundraiser of the year, and organizers expect to break $2.5 million dollars this year.
The 29th Annual Relay for Life drew a huge crowd of survivors, family members, caregivers, and supporters to raise money for cancer research and assistance for people diagnosed.
Survivors were honored with medals and cheered on as they walked around the track for the Survivors Lap. Events of the evening included games, raffles, and a silent auction. Besides fundraisings, Relay for Life is a good way to educate people about cancer.
"Not only are we trying to support those who have cancer, we're trying to prevent it. So, we do public service announcements, 'Hey, if you haven't had a colonoscopy, get checked, if you haven't had a mammography, get checked.' This is also an educational event as well," explained Cheryl Nagy, who sits on the Relay for Life committee and works for Lima Memorial Health System, a major sponsor of the event.
The mayor of Lima, Sharetta Smith, was also present to congratulate the survivors. She says the number of businesses sponsoring the event says a lot about the kind of people Lima has.
"The amount of support that has shown up here this evening shows that we have a business community that doesn't just care about the bottom dollar, but cares about the lives of people and again will come together to support such an important health issue that affects all of us," she said.
Luminary bags around the track and the stadium's scoreboard displayed the names of both survivors and those who have passed away.
