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01/27/2015 11:00 PMIf you live in Branford, North Branford, Guilford, Madison, or East Haven and care about someone touched by cancer, rally around them and send a team to Relay for Life of the Shoreline.
Teams are forming now for the May 16 event at Walsh Intermediate School (WIS) in Branford. On Thursday, Feb. 5, American Cancer Society (ACS) Relay for Life Specialist Emily Ciliberto invites teams to join her at a special kick-off /registration event at Eli's on the Hill in Branford from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
"The first hour is for drinks, food, and mingling, and then we'll have a short program to go over the relay," explains Emily. "We're also recognizing the top 10 fundraising teams of 2014 and we'll be sharing some fundraising ideas that are fun and different. This year, the focus is also going to be more on individuals getting involved, so even if you can't raise money for a team, you can come to the event and find out how you can get involved."
Those interested can register for the Relay at the Feb. 5 kick-off (any team captain there to sign up for the event earns some Relay swag) or online at
www.relayforlife.org/shorelinect.
Always a heartwarming event, Relay for Life of the Shoreline is re-tooling this year to attract more participants-including drastically changing its time format by cutting out its overnight time slot to help gather those who may have less time to put aside to participate.
"This year, we've revamped the Relay so that it's going to be 12-hour event that's done all in one day, from noon to midnight on Saturday, May 16," says Emily, noting past Relays have always started up on a Saturday, run through the night, and concluded in the morning on Sunday.
In addition, the Relay is reaching out to invite teams from the towns of East Haven and North Branford for the first time this year. Emily hopes these new additions will help pull in enthusiastic teams from families, businesses, schools, community organizations, church groups, neighborhoods, and more.
"It has always been very youth-heavy, but that can be very cyclical as kids go on to college. So we're trying to recruit more school teams-and not just from Branford schools, but from other schools as well," says Emily, while also thanking Branford Public Schools, and especially WIS Principal Robin Goeler, for support in past years and continuing support.
To reach beyond schools, "We're also working with the Shoreline Chamber of Commerce [of Branford and Guilford] to reach out to the greater community," she notes.
As always, all of the funds generated by Relay for Life of the Shoreline will support ACS in its battle to end cancer and provide services to those in need of support.
"We find it helps people get involved if they know where the money's going," says Emily. "We try to get out into the community and educate people [that] the money raised helps so many different programs, like our 1-800 number that's staffed 24/7. So if your mom was just diagnosed and you don't know what to do, you can call at 2 a.m. and someone will be there to talk to."
Other ACS programs include Road to Recovery, which provides free rides to treatments; Hope Lodges around the country, providing lodging for those who may need to travel for treatment; Reach to Recovery, which pairs those with a breast cancer diagnosis with a mentor; and many others.
"We're also funding research," notes Emily. "We have 47 Nobel Prize winners who have been funded, including some who are right here at Yale. Relay for Life and American Cancer Society tries to figure out where the greatest support is needed and fund it. Knowing that really resonates with people."
While Relay for Life of the Shoreline has been held in Branford for the past three years, it's definitely not new to the shoreline. It was introduced in Guilford more than a decade ago and was held at Guilford High School for many years, then moved to the Guilford Fairgrounds for a time, before settling at WIS, where it has been catching on ever since.
"We had a great response last year with 600 registered and 900 participating on the day, because we also offer open registration at the event," says Emily. "This year, we'd love to increase those numbers."
This year's Relay for Life of the Shoreline takes place on May 16 at WIS from noon to midnight. Open registration begins at
11 a.m. The "relay" involves team members taking turns walking the school's track so that each team continuously has a member on the oval for the 12-hour duration.
"The goal is that each team always has one person on the track, because cancer never stops or sleeps," says Emily.
As for fundraising goals, Relay for Life of the Shoreline hopes to raise $11,000 this year, says Emily.
ACS Relays are held around the country to generate visible community support for those who are living with cancer, and, sadly, to help remember those who have passed away. Teams come up with mottos and T-shirts and decorate their provided "camp site" in the center of the track to help build a patchwork of color and celebration that endures throughout the event.
"We'll have the opening ceremony at noon, followed by the Survivors Lap to kick off the relay," says Emily.
"We really celebrate cancer survivors," Emily notes. "There's not only the Survivor's Lap, [but survivors also] get a gift bag and we have speakers and a Survivors Luncheon under a tent, which they can attend with a caregiver."
At 9 p.m., the track becomes a warmly lit tribute to those who have come up against cancer, during the Luminaria Ceremony. Each luminaria bag, which can be purchased with a donation and decorated for personalization, is set around the track and lit with a single candle.
To keep spirits high both night and day, a live DJ spins tunes to walk by, and local performance groups, such as Branford schools' dance team members, will light up the main stage. WIS also offers its high-flying zip line to add to entertainment options for team members.
"This year, Walsh is bringing back the zip line, and we're also working on types of games and activities that we want to have available for participants to enjoy," says Emily.
With its revamped programming, an extra push to reach out to schools and communities, and the addition of two towns, "I think there is so much untapped potential," says Emily.
"People on the shoreline haven't really known about Relay for Life of the Shoreline. Part of my job is showing people, whether you participate in the Relay or not, that all of our programs and services are open to the anyone. That's really our goal at American Cancer Society."