Relay for Life fights back against cancer

At UNH's Relay For Life, students are celebrating the lives of people who have battled cancer, remembering loved ones lost and fighting back against the disease.

Elise Bodwell, a UNH sophomore, is celebrating, remembering and fighting back against cancer for the first time this year.

"It's unreal how powerful cancer is," said Bodwell.  "I feel for everyone out there who is fighting it, has survived it, and for their family and friends who have helped them along the way."

The American Cancer Society's Relay for Life at the University of New Hampshire will begin at noon this Saturday, April 17, at the Paul Sweet Oval indoor track and will continue until noon the next day.

As of April 13, 136 teams and 1,235 participants were registered for the event.  These participants have worked to raise $69,878, and that number is expected to grow in the upcoming days.  All funds raised goes toward cancer research and support for cancer patients and their families.  Participating teams are asked to have a representative on the track at all times during the overnight event. 

"I am already loving the experience," Bodwell said.  "It's great to be part of a team, working together to support a cause that is important to all of us.  I encourage everyone to get involved.  It's going to be an exciting and insightful experience."

According to the American Cancer Society website, Relay began in 1985 when Dr. Gordy Klatt, a colorectal surgeon in Tacoma, WA, ran and walked around a track for 24 hours to raise money for the American Cancer Society.

Each year, according to the website, more than 3.5 million people in 5,000 communities in the United States, along with additional communities in 20 other countries, gather to take part in this global phenomenon and raise much-needed funds and awareness to save lives from cancer.

"Relay has been at UNH for about seven or eight years now," said Jess Keravich, the UNH Relay For Life co-chair.  "This fundraiser is very important to me because cancer has taken too much from me."

After losing her grandfather, grandmother and mother to cancer, as well as seeing two aunts battle the disease, Keravich decided to take action.

"Doing the fundraiser is for them, to show them my support and how I am fighting back so others are not affected by cancer the way my family and I have been," she said.

Many UNH students also have personal reasons for why they will be walking.

"The reason I decided to join a Relay for Life team is because there have been several instances of cancer in my family, including my mom," said Bodwell.  "It was a time in my life where my priorities realigned and I began to realize how serious cancer is and how short life can be."

UNH senior Doug Swain will also be walking this weekend. Swain has been personally touched by cancer, first losing a childhood neighbor and more recently, his girlfriend.  UNH student Jess Fubel passed away from neuroblastoma and mesothelioma after struggling with the disease for more than seven years.  Despite the tremendous loss that he has faced, Swain attempts to turn his own experience into a way to help others whose lives have been affected by cancer.

"Never forget those people who deal with cancer every day," said Swain.  "The doctors and nurses, the sick and passed away, and their relatives and friends.  These people are the most important to the struggle against cancer, and we need to do all we can to support and help."

Swain's team has worked to raise over $2,500.  He is excited for the event and is looking forward to this weekend.

"Events such as Relay for Life provide a way for people in a community to come together and celebrate the prospect of a better future where cancer will not have to be coped with as it is today," Swain said.  "It is an amazing way for community members who may seem to have limited power on their own, to unite and make a major impact."

To join a Relay for Life team, or to make a donation to the American Cancer Society, visit www.relayforlife.org/unh.