The American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life, started in 1985 to raise money for cancer research and treatment, is truly one of the most amazing fundraising events there is. On Sunday, May 31st, one of many nationwide relays took place at Weston High School’s track, and lots of Wayland High School students showed up to take part in what turned out to be an incredibly successful event. Tents were erected in the center of the track, and teams from all over relayed through the night.

Some people might think it is irrational to suffer sleep deprivation, losing your voice, and losing time that could be spent doing homework. But it might seem a little less irrational when you think about the toll cancer has had on America. One in three Americans will get cancer, and one in four will die from it. It costs America over $110 billion dollars per year to fight, treat, and research cancer. In about the time it takes you to do your math homework, two people will have died just from prostate cancer, one of the multitudinous forms that cancer takes. Ask anyone about how cancer has affected their life, and nine out of ten times you will hear a story about a friend or loved one who has died from cancer or is living with it.

However bad cancer may seem, there is hope. The Relay For Life has raised $1.5 billion dollars over the course of its existence, and all of this money goes to fighting back at the disease that has claimed so many lives.

The relay started at 6:00 PM on March 31st, and ended at 9:00 on June 1st. Hundreds of participants walked, played football on the field, or listened to music throughout the night. Everywhere you went you could smell food cooking and hear people talking excitedly as they walked. At 9:00 the lights were dimmed for the silent laps. Volunteers laid out paper bags with candles in them on the inside of the track. Each bag had the name of a loved one who had been affected by cancer. Relayers walked in silent respect of those who had cancer.

Later, there were theme laps, each of which had a funny theme like “Revenge of the Nerds”, or “Superheroes.” These lasted for a pretty long time. There was also a Ms. Relay pageant, where guys who were participating had to gather votes to determine who would be the next Ms. Relay.

Some people tried to sleep about halfway through, (I did, in vain), but for the most part the scene remained vibrant and energetic. In the morning, however, people seemed tired as they disassembled their tents and pushed their grills back to their cars. It was a great night, and a great way to spend 15 hours of your time. Henry David Thoreau once said that only two things were certain in life: death and taxes. Well, I’m certain that I’ll be going to the next Relay for Life, as it was the most fun I’ve ever had doing community service.