My daughter, Kirsten, and I walked with the two Sharp Realty teams at our local Relay for Life event sponsored by the American Cancer Society on June 23rd & 24th where the preliminary numbers indicate that we raised over $265,000 to donate towards fighting cancer. This is a substantial increase over the $202,000 raised last year. This is only Brentwood's 3rd annual event and it's getting bigger & better each year. This great success would not be possible without everyone's support, so again, thanks to all who supported & donated to the cause.
We actually had a really good time, while we were doing all of this. There were many fun moments as well as some emotional moments. Here are a few of my more poignant moments:
The 24 hour walk always starts with the survivor lap, where those who are currently fighting, or have survived cancer, walk the first lap. It is amazing seeing how many people locally have been affected by cancer and quite emotional knowing that every one of these people and their families has been so dramatically affected. In that crowd is my friend Rochelle, my friend Allen's mom and our friend's the Swisher's young son Britton. Here's a picture I took of the survivor lap:
At dusk, there was a luminary ceremony where the entire high school track was lined with luminaries dedicated to those who are surviving or have passed away from cancer. There were some inspirational readings, a couple of beautiful songs sung wonderfully by Kirsten's good friend Sami (Wind Beneath My Wings & Don't Forget to Remember Me) and a very emotional & personal sharing by Brian Swisher of the affect of Leukemia on his son Britton and their whole family. Brian struggled to re-tell of the horrors of going through that experience and the toll it took on Britton and their family. He shared that the survival rate with this kind of cancer has improved from essentially a death sentence a mere 30-40 years ago to being survived over 65% of the time now. It is the money raised and research done that has resulted in this dramatic improvement. He thanked everyone for their participation and stated that everyone who works to raise money, educate & perform research are heroes in today's world. Brian shared that while we know many causes of many cancers and there are many preventative measures that we know we can take to minimize our risks of getting certain kinds of cancer, there are other kinds of cancer, such as Leukemia, that we don't understand why people become afflicted. The only solution for these cancers at the moment is effective treatment after coming down with it. Britton spent over 6 months in San Francisco in a cancer ward where he endured chemotherapy, bone marrow transplants & more. Fortunately, Britton is doing very well now, because of the funds raised and research done in the past. The Swishers and all of us look forward to the day when no one has to hear the dreaded words, "You have cancer".
Kirsten, Sami & I walked two hours for our teams from 2 am until 4 am Sunday morning. Last year, Kirsten & I spent the whole time together. This year, Kirsten & Sami walked mostly by themselves visiting & having a good time. For over 1 ½ hours I walked by myself and just thought. I spent much of the time thinking happy thoughts about my dad, boy do I miss him. I thought about many friends and family who've had cancer. There are many cancer survivors/fighters: Rochelle, Britton, Allen's mom, June N., Quinn, John D., Mike M. and others. And there have been many that have passed away from cancer: Matthew H., Berta, and so many others. I wanted each of them and their families to know that they were in my thoughts. I spent a lot of time being thankful that Rene, Garrett & Kirsten have not been stricken with cancer. I wondered what more I could do to help raise funds or otherwise help. I was pleased that Kirsten & Sami found me when there was just about 15 minutes left and we walked hand in hand around the track.
It was a great 24 hours and we'll be doing it again next year, even bigger & better.
There are more than 4800 communities that sponsor Relay for Life events and the combined fundraising represents the largest fundraising efforts in the world for one cause. Many of my friends who I emailed for donations responded that you already donate to the Brentwood Relay for Life, Relay for Life events in other communities, or other cancer research causes such as St Jude's Children's research program. That is wonderful.
If you'd like to learn more about cancer prevention and early detection, please click on the following link: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/ped_0.asp
Through your support, Kirsten & I raised over $500 and climbing. Donations can still be made to either Kirsten's tally or mine at:
Kirsten - http://www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/brentwood/kirstenhuxtable
Glenn - http://www.acsevents.org/relay/ca/brentwood/glennhuxtable
Please feel free to forward to others you think would be interested in any of this information or possibly donating. Thanks for you time & support.
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