Homer Alaska - News

Building on last year's attention-getting success, Relay For Life organizers are hard at work, determined to make this 2010 American Cancer Society fundraiser even bigger and better.

Launched in 2009 under the theme "Fishing For a Cure," Homer joined "Relay Nation," as it is known, becoming one of 49 new relays in the ACS's Great Northwest Division and part of a worldwide collaboration with roots going back to Tacoma, Wash., 1985.

Dr. Gorgy Klatt, a Tacoma-area colorectal surgeon, wanted to show support for all his patients battling cancer, as well as raise money to help battle the disease. To do so, Klatt spent 24 hours circling the track at the University of Puget Sound, running more than 83 miles. As he circled the track, friends donated $25 to join him for 30-minute intervals. The effort raised $27,000 and began a movement that has since swept across the world and attracts more than 3 million participants. Working in relay teams, walkers and runners follow Klatt's example, circling tracks in their hometowns, honoring individuals undergoing treatment for cancer and remembering those lost to the disease. In 2005 alone, relays worldwide raised more than $351.5 million.

Carolyn Bishop, whose mother died of cancer, organized Homer's entrance onto the relay stage last year. It blew past its initial goals: 20 teams, 40 cancer survivor participants, $20,000 raised. When the dust settled and numbers were added, participants included 22 teams, 60 survivors and a total 257 relayers bringing in $67,000, giving Homer the distinction of being the number one rookie relay in ACS's Great Northwest division.

At the 2010 kick-off, planning meeting and team sign-up meeting Jan. 28, Bishop announced the 2010 theme is "Celebrate More Birthdays," a nod toward successfully battling cancer. Balloons decorating the meeting area were printed with the words "celebrate," "remember" and "fight back." This year's goals: 30 teams, 50 survivors participating, $40,000 raised.

"Last year we had 60 survivors, but some of those hadn't even signed up. They just showed up at the event," said Bishop, explaining why the 2010 goal was less than 2009.

Times and dates for the 2010 Homer Relay for Life, held at the Homer High School track, are 6 p.m. June 11 until 2 p.m. June 12. It begins with a lap traditionally set aside for cancer survivors, the color of their shirts setting them apart from other relayers.

"That's not a club you want to join, but when you see those people it makes you feel good," said Marilyn Parrett of Homer, a cancer survivor and chairman of the team development committee for the Homer relay.

Five teams, numbering 8-15 people, have already signed up for Homer's 2010 relay, with room for more Bishop and Parrett said. Among the returning teams is WAKO — We All Know One— led by Scott Harding, a cancer survivor. The team led Homer relay's fundraising effort in 2009, bringing in $11,000.

A team captains' meeting will be schedule soon, with a "team captain university" to follow, offering tips on team-building and fundraising.

"It's so much fun," said Parrett, who not only participated in the first lap of the Homer relay as a survivor, but also was joined in the second lap set aside for survivors and their caregivers, by her husband, Randy.

A multi-year veteran of the Relay for Life held in Soldotna and dedicated to organizing Homer's second relay, Bishop has had an opportunity to see hundreds of people whose lives have been impacted by cancer locally and on the peninsula and the many who stand ready to offer support.

"It takes all of us," Bishop said of the effort needed to find a cure.

To know more about the Homer Relay for Life, visit the Web at www.relayforlifeofhomer.org or call Bishop at 235-7491 or 299-0073.

McKibben Jackinsky can be reached at mckibben.jackinsky.@homernews.com.