Money raised in 2010

Our team raised $16,768 this year for the American Cancer Society!! Great job team!!

Only 11 Days Until RELAY!!!

If you haven't done so already you should mark your calendars to join us on the track at College of the Redwoods on Saturday, July 10th!

Come walk, support team fundraisers, watch the Ceremony of Hope & Lighting of the Luminarias or just come say hi! 

We'll be there from 10am on Saturday to 10am on Sunday.

Relay is a super fun event for a very worthy cause and we'd love to see you there!

P.S. Our team has raised $15, 193 as of today!!!!

3rd Annual "Hunting for a Cure" Yard Sale

Date: June 19, 2010
Where: 1812 Sycamore Ct, McKinleyville
Time: 8am-4pm

We've PASSED our Goal!!!

We have currently raised $13,127.68!!!

THANK YOU to everyone who has made a donation!!

1st Annual RFL Dinner & Auction RESULTS

A Big thank you to everyone who supported and made this event successful!! We couldn't of done it without the very generous auction donations from all of the local businesses or Cher-Ae Heights Casino for giving us this opportunity! I can't thank you all enough!

Altogether the event raised about $26,000 and had about 550 in attendance!!

Our team, Hunting for a Cure, raised almost $9,000!!! We ROCK!

Save the date for next year's Dinner & Action on June 6, 2011!

Get your tickets now!

2010 Donation THANK YOU's!!

Thank you so much for your support! It's truly appreciated!!

Businesses

Arcata Stationers. Franklin's Service, Becker Insurance, Fortuna Optometry, Deb's Bark Avenue Grooming, Bella Vista Realty

Community

Ceva King, Steven Shanafelt, Ben McWhorter, Jim & Connie Kirk, Shane & Cindy McWhorter, Dr. Johnathan Choi DDS, Casey Mitchell, Terri Tuttle, Jason Simas, Britni McWhorter, Karen & Mike Roberts, Mel & Kathryn Glaspey, Erika Clinton, Tim & Dona Latham, Chris Hamer, Dianne Byington, Tim & Renee Renner, Jim & Cecilia Titus, Jack & Linda Russ, Toni Noah, Mary Mertz, Judy Nelson, George & Edna Borges, Susan Lacy, Dennis & Susie Del Biaggio, Dona Mendes, Alan French, Deb Cook, Barbara & Don Kennedy, Jim & Mary Jo Renner, Stephen & Rina Brodhag, Ruben & Vicky Ledesma, PJ & Lauire Lynch, Skip & Shirley Jacobsen, Jennifer Jacobsen, Alice Backer, Jody Crandall, Mark Rynearson, Berit Locatelli, Hannah Roberts, Cindy Ross

Our team participated in the 1st Annual Relay Expo last Saturday. We sold yummy baked goods, Save The TaTas items, and more! Attendance was on the low side but it was a lot of fun and now we know what we need to do next year to make it bigger & better. We made $228 for the American Cancer Society and sold 10 tickets ($200 worth) to our big fundraiser in June! Thanks team for all of your hard work and baking!!

Our next fundraiser is a taco & tostada bar at the Captain's meeting this coming Thursday! Wish us luck and I hope everyone comes hungry!!

Relay For Life Expo

The American Cancer Society Relay For Life has decided to try something new this year and host a Relay For Life Expo. The main point of the Expo is to get the community involved. In recent years, Relay For Life has seen a decline in participation which I think is sad because Cancer is definitely not declining and is still a major issue and threat. Cancer isn't stopping and neither should we!!

At the Expo the community can form Relay teams, volunteer to be on a committee, volunteer to help at the July Relay event, or volunteer to help in other ways.

Also, teams will be there selling crafts, baked goods, tickets to fund raising events, cancer awareness items, etc for donations that will go towards their team's goal and will be donated to The American Cancer Society.

Please come out and support a great cause!!

When: Saturday, March 13, 2010
Where: Eureka High School Gymnasium
Time: 11am- 2pm (Set-up starts at 9am for teams)

Why We Relay...

Britni: I Relay for my Grandma Lorena Shanafelt and my Nana Billie McWhorter.
My Grandma passed away from colon cancer when I was only 4 years old. Even though I have a few memories of her I wish I had been given the chance to really know her. What I do remember is that she was beautiful inside and out, full of happiness, and her heart was full of love for my Grandpa and her family. I hate that this disease took her from us at the young age of 58, she had so much more life in her to live.

My Nana passed away from lung cancer when I was 15 years old. Even though I was older, 15 years still wasn’t enough. Nana was the rock of our family and in a way she still is. She ran Sequoia Gas Company for 23 years before she lost her battle with cancer in 1999. This year is my 10th year employed by my family’s business and the highest compliment I have received is being referred to as “Little Billie.”

I love and miss them both very much every day and wish that I had gotten more time with them. I Relay so hopefully our future generations won’t have to deal with this heartache that a lot of us know too well.

Cindy: My sister, Jane (Jacobsen) Neal, passed away February 18, 2009 after a long and brave battle with cancer.  Only 54 years old, she was one of the strongest people I have ever known. Her attitude and strength of will was remarkable. Her fight was relentless and tenacious.  Jane loved life and loved her family and she had a great sense of humor. Though she is sorely missed, her light shines brightly in all of us.  I relay for my sister, Jane.

Karen: My mom was the first person I knew who had passed away from cancer. She was 58 years old.   I was 26, my daughter Britni was 4 and my son Mathew was 1 1/2.  My mom loved her grandchildren so much and I was so happy to have a mom close by to be a Grandma to my children.  Cancer took that away from us.
Over the years I have had friends and relatives pass away from this horrible disease, but I have also seen cancer survivors as well.  My husband Mike has been cancer free for nearly 5 years!  I believe with all my heart that Relay For Life has made a huge difference, giving people the hope that is needed to survive. 
I recently read a story about a lady who's name is Kris Carr. She is a successful actress and photographer and a "cowgirl"!  On February 14th, 2003, at the age of 31, she was called in to her doctors office to get the results of some tests he had recently ran on her. Her doctor told her she had an extremely rare vascular cancer, stage IV, he told her it was inoperable and incurable. Kris went home and wrote a note-to-herself in her day planner: "Happy Valentine's Day. You have cancer."
Her life story is amazing! She is now 38!! Since her (incurable) cancer, Kris has started her own company,authored two books,(Crazy Sexy Cancer Tips and Crazy Sexy Cancer Survivor). She has also made a documentary film for The Learning Channel (Crazy Sexy Cancer),she married her cameraman(a longtime friend), and created a Web site and blog (www.crazysexylife.com). She speaks out about cancer all over the world. Kris is often seen sporting tee shirts with sayings on them like: MY ONCOLOGIST IS MY HOMEBOY.
One of Kris's (Crazy Sexy Tips) is " Nobody can predict the future; don't be gunned down by what you hear.  Incurable isn't a declaration, it's a dare!
Just a few reason's "Why I Relay".
Karen Roberts

Megan: I relay for my Grandma Gino who passed away from pancreatic cancer at 64 years of age. I was only 7 years old when she passed but I cherish those 7 years I had with her so much. I hope that in the future we are able to find a cure for all cancer so people won't have to suffer any more from this horrible disease.

1st Annual Relay For Life Dinner & Auction

2010 Relay Season is upon us!!

This is my 3rd Relay season as Captain of my wonderful "Hunting for a Cure" team and I know it's going to be a good one! 

Last year was great! We surpassed our $10,000 goal which was amazing and such an awesome feeling knowing that our little team of 9 people could do that. I have a fabulous team!!

This year our team is doing a BIG fundraiser with the help of Cher-Ae Heights Casino in Trinidad. This fundraiser will include an awesome Tri-Tip dinner and live & silent auctions! I'm so excited for this fundraiser! The amount of money we could raise with some hard work could be HUGE! The event will be June 7th @ 6pm. Tickets will go on sale in April and will only be $20. For that $20 you will get a great dinner and $10 in casino cash while supporting a very important and worthy cause.

We will also be having some smaller fundraisers like our 3rd annual team yard sale which will be held on June 19th @ 1812 Sycamore Ct in McKinleyville. This will be a great yard sale to support since all of the money will be donated to Relay For Life. It's during the annual Heartwood Subdivision Yard Sale so there will be others going on also. Yard sale heaven for you yard sale lovers!

More news and info will be coming soon!

2010 is going to be a great year!! 

My Team is AWESOME!!

We have surpassed our $10,000 goal!!!
Our total is $10,052.38. Great job ladies!!

Community turns out to make 'cancer walk the plank' for Relay for Life

It was less than a week ago when Danni Guinn and her mother, Wendy Guinn, found themselves in the American Cancer Society's Discovery Shop and inspiration struck.

”We just decided, why the heck not?” Danni Guinn said, explaining that, at that moment, she and her mom decided to form a Relay for Life team -- just five days before the big event.

About two years ago, Wendy Guinn was diagnosed with Stage 2 cervical cancer. Last Monday, she and her daughter decided it was time to give back.

So on Saturday, with a pirate flag in hand and a patch over one eye, Danni Guinn joined hundreds of others whose lives have been touched by cancer and walked the track at College of the Redwoods.

”We're the pirates of persistence, making cancer walk the plank,” Danni Guinn said, with a laugh, before seriously talking about how much the event meant to her mom. “She's very bright today.”

The 25th annual 24-hour event kicked off at 10 a.m. Saturday, as Humboldt County participants joined millions across the country in celebrating the lives of those who have battled cancer, remembering loved ones lost and fighting back against the disease that has brought havoc to countless lives.

Funds raised from the event help fight cancer in the local community.

Many said that even sagging local and national economies have not reduced the generosity of the local community, which they said has continued to offer pledges for the event in record numbers.

Local event chair Kathryn McHugh said the annual fundraiser would simply not be possible without the generosity of local businesses, like Wildberries, which sponsored KHUM's 24-hour broadcast from the event.

Noting that the list of sponsors and donors was too long to name, McHugh said a special thank you to CalFire, which supplied the staff to cook three meals to be provided to relay participants.

McHugh said the event is all about celebration, and honoring the people, like the Guinns, whose lives have been connected by this horrible disease. With that, tears began to flow down McHugh's face.

”Anyone who works with cancer patients never wears mascara -- we cry all the time,” she said, smiling through the tears. “You might hear a happy story, you might hear a sad story, but you always cry.”

And as the Survivor Lap indicated, nearly everyone at Relay for Life -- big or small, young or old -- has a story.

Cindy McWhorter said she was walking for her sister, Jane, who died of lung cancer in February after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor 18 years earlier.

”Jane had the most incredible attitude and sense of humor, and she was not going to let this beat her,” McWhorter said.

Standing beside the track as the survivors finished their lap to open Saturday's event, Edna Seitz of Eureka said she doesn't have cancer, but wanted to support the cause. Saturday, she found her story.

”It's just wonderful,” she said with tears in her eyes as she watched dozens of cancer survivors pass by. Some, too young to walk, were carried on their parents' shoulders. Others, too old or frail to make the lap, were pushed in wheelchairs.

”It just tears at my heart strings,” Seitz said.

Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard (Posted 7/12/09)

Relay Pictures

Relay For Life 2009

Well it's the Monday after Relay and we all survived!

The Relay weekend started off on Friday with set-up at 12pm. Karen, Cindy, Lorelei, Whitney, and myself had to pack all of our stuff (and it was a lot) across the CR football field to our campsite. Once we got all of our stuff(tents, tables, chairs, sleeping bags, etc) over there we began to set-up the tents. The first pop-up tent that we tried to put up was broken :( so after struggling with it for a little while we took it down and put up the 2nd pop-up tent. That one was much better! Then we started putting up our big 8 person tent aka the Vacation Home. We must have looked like we needed some help because the CA prisoner guys that were there helping came over to help us. They put our tent up very quickly! After we got everything set-up at the campsite Karen, Whitney, and I went to Fortuna to pick-up our grand prize, the BBQ that Fortuna Ace donated. I was soooo scared that the BBQ was going to fly out of my truck on the highway but we made it with no problems thank goodness. Since I didn't want to deal with getting to our BBQ to the campsite in the morning I talked Casey into going back to CR with me to help get the BBQ to our campsite. I bought a little padlock on our way there so I could lock the BBQ in our tent. I didn't want our grand prize to go missing :)

I stayed up until 1am finishing most of the little details and baking a birthday cake for Whitney. The next morning, Saturday, I got up at 6:30am, finished anything I hadn't gotten done the night before, and headed to the track. I arrived at the track at 8:45am. With the help of Cindy's garden wagon I was able to unload my truck and haul the stuff across the track to our site. I wasn't all that excited to be sweating at 9am but it's for a good cause right! :) The rest of the team started getting there around 9:20am. We put up all of our signs and got everything ready to sell.

The Survivor Lap kicked off Relay at about 10:30am, a little bit late but that's ok. The Survivor Lap was very emotional. There were young survivors, old survivors and every age in between survivors. I found myself choking back tears as I watch parents holding their very young survivors in their arms or on their shoulders. I find myself almost in tears as I write this remembering the Survivor lap and their little faces. I can't even imagine what those kids and parents have gone through. God bless them all!

We all hung out and walked at our designated times on Saturday. The Luminaria's started to be lit around 9pm and we went and found our Lumianaria bags. The Ceremony of Hope started at 9:30pm. They honored community members that had recently lost their fight, a caregiver that has gone above & beyond, and a US soldier that was diagnosed with cancer after he got home from Iraq. It was very special and emotional when we got to see our loved ones pictures on the big screen.

We continued walking through the night, even when it started pouring! Rain in July?! What's up with that Mother Nature??

We started packing all of our stuff up around 8am. Everything was sooo wet :( We continued walking until about 9:30am when they stopped everyone. We had everything packed up by 9:30am thanks to Darl (Megan's boyfriend), Casey (my boyfriend), and the rest of the team so when Relay ended at 10am we were ready and very willing to head home.

We drew the winning tickets for our wonderful prizes at 9:30am. The grand prize winner was sooooo excited to have won the BBQ. I was excited that THEY came to get it and we didn't have to take it anywhere :) The winners of the Spa Day Package & the 49er Package were at Relay which made it very easy. The only one that wasn't there was the lady who won the Dinner & Movies for 2 package which was just 2 gift certificates so I stuck them in the mail this morning. The prizes worked out very well.

I wanted to give a BIG thank you to Fortuna Ace Hardware, Body in Balance, Like Nobody Else, Shane McWhorter, and Bill Chino for donating our fabulous prizes. We couldn't do this with out you!!

I encourage EVERYONE to participate in Relay somehow. You can join a team, start a new team, donate to a team, come to the event and support the teams there, volunteer, etc. It seems like the attendence & money raised keeps going down every year which I think is very sad. Cancer affects 1 in 3 people..I can't think of a better cause to support.

All in all it was another great Relay and I couldn't of asked for a better team. I thank you ladies from the bottom of my heart. I truly appreciate all of your hard work and hope you'll will join me next year!!

Relay Event

The Eureka Relay for Life event is this weekend at the College of the Redwoods track.
It starts at 10am on Saturday & ends at 10am on Sunday.

Our team will be selling raffle tickets for some really awesome prizes, Save the Ta♥Tas t-shirts, car magnets, & pins, and some other cancer awareness items.

We'll be there for a full 24 hours so come say hi and make a donation to help support a GREAT cause!

Please come out a support us and all of the other Relay teams fighting to find a cure for cancer.

Pampered Chef Party SUCCESS!!

Our team hosted a very fun & yummy Pampered Chef party on June 5th and 15% of our total sales were donated to the American Cancer Society!

The consultant, Taunya Brunton, did an awesome job cooking us a very yummy vege pizza and we all had a ton of fun ordering awesome kitchen stuff and just hanging out.

Our total sales were $1,080! So we raised $162 for our team and the ACS!!!
What a fun way to raise money!!!

SAVE THE TATAS T-SHIRTS

We are selling Save the Tatas women's t-shirts for a $20 donation.

3 different shirts: Laughter Heals(Pink), Imagine a World Without Cancer(Black), and Save the TaTas(Pink, Black, White)

We also have buttons & car magnets!!

Yard Sale SUCCESS!!

Our yard sale last weekend was a great success!!
We raised $742.50 for the American Cancer Society!!

Thank you so much for everyone that participated!!

Also:
We raised $250 at our 2nd yard sale!!