Barnegat Relay for Life Teams Kicking Annual Cancer Society Fundraiser Into High Gear

Representatives from 34 teams got together on Wednesday at the TD Bank in Barnegat, where preparations for third annual Relay For Life are kicking into high gear.

Two hundred and sixty-six people signed up for the popular American Cancer fundraiser that is part prevention and awareness campaign, part support effort for cancer sufferers and their families.

Barnegat raised $6,486 so far, in addition to $22,990 in online donations, according to Cecilia LaPoint, 38, of Barnegat, who is a member of the Fight Back Committee, and has been involved with Relay since its inception three years ago.

At the end of last year's Relay for Life, Barnegat teams raised $50,000.

"This year I'm hoping for $75,000 to $90,000," LaPoint said.

LaPoint's husband Michael passed away 13 years ago, shortly after he was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 38. When he had first started getting sick and losing weight, her husband avoided consulting the doctor, because of his fear of needles.

By the time he was diagnosed, he was in the final stage, LaPoint said. "The doctors said he probably walked around with it for three to four years," she said.

Now, LaPoint said, she is working to raise awareness.

"I want to help make people aware of the importance of getting tested," LaPoint said. "My big thing is getting tested."

Barnegat resident John Germano, who is the event's chair in Barnegat for the third year now, lost his mother, to cancer last August.

"But that's why I relay," Germano said.

"I've had family members die from cancer, and I don't want people to know this feeling, the way I felt when it happened," said Tori Sullivan, 15, of Barnegat.

Christine Revello, 49, of Barnegat, survived colon cancer and melanoma, then was diagnosed with Stage I breast cancer last November, which she also conquered, she said, though she is still on chemotherapy.

"I feel very lucky that I had cancer three times, and I'm still alive and strong as a bull," said Revello, who is participating in Relay for Life for the first time this year. "So it makes me appreciate life a little bit more. So, Relay for Life? Why not!"

For other participants, being a part of the growing anti-cancer campaign isn't as personal.

"I am doing it for my family, my friends and my community," said Camping Grounds Co-chair Bob Osborn, 42, of Barnegat. "It's an important cause."

Participants picked up their team T-shirts, chose their campsite spots and signed up for activities on Wednesday for the night of the Relay, which will take place on Friday, May 18, at 5 p.m. and go on until the following morning outside the Barnegat High School.

Teams will camp out in tents by the high school football field, with members taking turns running the track the entire night, in the midst of non-stop fundraising, because "cancer never sleeps," according to the American Cancer Society.

Activities from face painting and a "giant scavenger hunt" to  "Soapbox Derby" and "Miss Relay," where a man would dress up in a woman's dress, then peform for the public to raise money, will take place all night long in between Realy's traditional ceremonies which include a survivors' dinner, an opening ceremony, a "Survivors' Lap," a "Fight Back" ceremony, and more.

"Even if you don't have a team in Relay, you can still come and join us," LaPoint said. "Just come out and register, walk the track and participate in events and check out all the teams who are fundraising."