LUMBERTON — Chilly temperatures and sporadic showers couldn’t keep cancer survivors like Sandra Pridgen away from Relay for Life.

“Rain, sleet or snow, we’ll relay,” said Pridgen, who serves as co-captain of Shagging for a Cure. The beach-inspired team was one of several groups that participated in the 21st annual Relay for Life on Friday at the Robeson County Fairgrounds.

Pridgen was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010, the same year Shagging for a Cure was founded. Its 37 members have since raised more than $85,000 for the American Cancer Society through events like Relay for Life.

“We’re not a business or a church,” she said. “We’re just a group of individuals that cancer has touched. It’s almost like being in a fraternity or a sorority. When you see a purple shirt, you know you have something in common with that person. You automatically speak their language.”

Thousands of people gathered at the fairgrounds for the 24-hour event, which started at 10 a.m. Friday and ended with a ceremony this morning. About 2,000 people turned out for the event, falling short of the 5,000 participants that organizers hoped to attract.

Amanda Smith, who helps organize the event, says attendance was stymied by the rain.

“We still had a great event,” she said. “People are going to show their support no matter what, even if it means walking in the rain. We’re satisfied with the turnout.”

The theme of this year’s event was “paint your world purple,” a reference to the signature color of cancer awareness. There was no fee for survivors to attend, but a $2 donation was required for other participants.

Rose Johnson, a member of Team Baltimore, sold handmade earrings crafted throughout the year to raise money for Relay for Life. The group hails from Baltimore Baptist Church in Fairmont, which counts several cancer survivors among its congregation.

Johnson said the idea came from a physical therapist-turned-jeweler who taught the craft to members of the church.

“We decided it would be a good way to raise money for Relay,” she said. “And we have great fellowship and fun doing it.”

The event, which organizers tout as one of the largest Relays in North Carolina, was previously held at Lumberton High School, but was moved to the fairgrounds in 2013 to accommodate the turnout.

Sharon Smith, a nurse navigator at Gibson Cancer Center, saw a number of familiar faces in the crowd.

“Most of these people are our patients or former patients,” she said. “Our survivors will come if they have to wear raincoats and hold umbrellas.”

Lead by a marching band, the purple-clad survivors carried banners and handmade signs along a mile-long track. They were reminded to count their blessings by the signs that dotted the course, many of them dedicated to cancer patients who didn’t make it.

The candlelight luminary ceremony, a perennial highlight of the event, was moved indoors to avoid the rain. The candles that are typically lit during the ceremony were traded for glow-sticks, with each light representing a loved one who lost their battle with cancer.

Relay for Life, which is held in more than 20 countries each year, raises money for the American Cancer Society with the aim of celebrating those who have battled cancer, remembering those who have been lost and fighting back against a disease that kills about 600,000 Americans each year.

The American Cancer Society estimates that 54,450 North Carolinians will be diagnosed with cancer in 2016, leading to 19,620 cancer-related deaths.

Margarette Oxendine knows the devastating toll that cancer can take. Both the 74-year-old and her husband survived bouts with the disease, but it didn’t spare her son, mother and brother.

“I don’t want a person to go through what I went through watching my son, knowing he was going to die,” said Oxendine, who was selling collard sandwiches at the fairgrounds. “My goal is to work to give them what money I make, and hopefully they will find a cure.”

Since launching in 1996, the Robeson County Relay for Life has raised about $2 million for the American Cancer Society. The amount raised during this year’s event will be published when it is made available to The Robesonian.

According to Pridgen, Relay for Life “is all about hope.”

“Cancer touches everybody,” she said as a group of umbrella-toting participants made their way around the track. “People are still walking, which just shows how passionate they are about this.”

Jaymie Baxley • The Robesonian • About 2,000 people attended the 21st annual Relay for Life at the Robeson County Fairgrounds on Friday. Although the turnout fell short of the 5,000 participants they hoped to attract, organizers said they were still “satisfied” with the turnout.
https://www.robesonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1__IMG2112.jpgJaymie Baxley • The Robesonian • About 2,000 people attended the 21st annual Relay for Life at the Robeson County Fairgrounds on Friday. Although the turnout fell short of the 5,000 participants they hoped to attract, organizers said they were still “satisfied” with the turnout.

Jaymie Baxley • The Robesonian • Undeterred by the rain, umbrella-toting participants make their way around the track to show support for cancer survivors during Relay for Life. The theme of this year’s event was “paint your world purple,” a reference to the signature color of cancer awareness.
https://www.robesonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1__IMG2157.jpgJaymie Baxley • The Robesonian • Undeterred by the rain, umbrella-toting participants make their way around the track to show support for cancer survivors during Relay for Life. The theme of this year’s event was “paint your world purple,” a reference to the signature color of cancer awareness.

Sarah Willets • The Robesonian • Rose Johnson, a member of Team Baltimore, sold handmade earrings that she crafted throughout the year to raise money for Relay for Life. The group hails from Baltimore Baptist Church in Fairmont, which counts several cancer survivors among its congregation.
https://www.robesonian.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_IMG_1440.jpgSarah Willets • The Robesonian • Rose Johnson, a member of Team Baltimore, sold handmade earrings that she crafted throughout the year to raise money for Relay for Life. The group hails from Baltimore Baptist Church in Fairmont, which counts several cancer survivors among its congregation.
Weather can’t stop cancer fight

By Jaymie Baxley • [email protected]

 

Staff writer Jaymie Baxley can be reached at 910-416-5771 or by email at [email protected]