Cancer fundraiser for West Yellowhead

Yellow daffodils, a symbol of hope, will be found throughout Hinton this week in celebration of Daffodil Days which runs March 30 to April 4 and will be on sale at the West Yellowhead Relay for Life registration on April 2 from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Parks West Mall in Hinton.

Relay for Life, the largest cancer fundraiser in the world, is a 12-hour relay event where teams camp out overnight and walk laps around a track in an effort to raise money for cancer research.

People of “all ages are welcome to form a team and raise funds in support for the fight against cancer. Teams pledge to keep one member walking or running for the entire 12 hours,” said staff partner Joette Forcier. “It’s about walking together in support of the Canadian Cancer Society.”

The event, which Forcier said she believes will be a “memorable experience,” has three aims – to remember, celebrate and fight back. These are represented throughout the event in a number of ways, said Forcier.

“Celebrate is celebrating cancer survivors so we would like to have 50 survivors at the event and they do a lap at the beginning... and typically we would have a pre-event reception for them,” she said.

There will be luminaries lit at dusk dedicated to “people we’ve lost to cancer or who have survived cancer,” she said.

All teams are asked to raise pledges for the event, which prides itself on giving 75 per cent of all the funds directly to cancer research and support programs across the country, with the rest going towards administration costs, Forcier said.

While the event will take place at the Gordon Moore Park in Hinton, the event is aimed at bringing people from the surrounding areas, including Jasper and Edson, together.

The event is not competitive as the laps are not counted, said Forcier, adding there are prizes for more light-hearted affairs such as campsite decorating.

Daffodils will also be on sale Friday at Walmart from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Parks West Mall on Saturday April 4 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Anyone looking to register for the Relay to Life should contact Joette Forcier at 780-437-4810 or at westyellowhead.relayforlife@cancer.ab.ca or attend the registration at the Parks West Mall on Thursday.