Libby residents get ready for Relay for Life
<p>Ward Crushing team members Sara Grotjohn, front, Ann Grotjohn and Sydney Christopherson Ward "groove" to the music as they complete a lap Friday evening during Relay for Life 2014.</p>
The annual Lincoln County Relay for Life will take place Friday, July 17. The community event will start at 6 p.m. and end at midnight with registration starting at 5 p.m.
The length of this year’s event is just one change for this year’s Relay for Life. In previous years the event ran from 6 p.m. until 8 a.m. Sydney Christopherson Ward, a Relay for Life committee member, believes having the event shortened makes sense.
“It’s a small event and it makes more sense to shorten it,” she said. “We are hoping with a shortened event and the relocation that we will draw a bigger crowd.”
The walk will take place at the Fred Brown Pavilion at Riverfront Park.
“We decided to change the location because Riverfront Park is more visible and just a beautiful area,” she said. “We have more publicity this year and more community involvement. I’ve worked really hard at getting sponsors and teams. It’s growing and that feels really good.”
The survivor lap will kick the event off.
“The survivor lap is a fantastic thing to witness,” she said. “To witness cancer survivors, who fought a hard battle walk that lap is truly touching.”
The committee is full of new members and Ward said it’s been great for planning and getting new ideas.
“There are new faces on the committee and it’s been nice to get some fresh ideas,” she said.
Ward said the support that the organization has received this year from the community has been great.
“The local businesses have been really supportive this year, along with the people in the community,’ she said.
They are expecting to have up to nine teams take part in this year’s walk.
“There are nine teams registered and team size varies,” she said. “Some teams will be made up of just one individual. Other teams will be much bigger, for example the team I’m a part of will be made up of 18 people. There is no minimum or maximum for team members.”
Beach party is the theme for this year’s walk. There will be badminton and other beach games taking place. Each team will have a beach party themed campsite set up.
Local musical groups, Forgotten Country and Back Adit will be providing musical entertainment. The Knights of Columbus will be cooking up food and there will be items up for raffle.
This year’s Relay for Life is much more than just the walk. It’s a time for family, friends and people within the community to get together for a good cause.
“It truly is a community event,” she said. “They don’t have to be on a team to come down and enjoy it. We are going to have live music, games, raffles and food.”
Ward has been taking part in Libby’s Relay for Life for seven years now and she has been a member of the board for two years. “
Cancer affects everybody,” she said. “People have lost family members or friends to cancer. I lost my dad to cancer in 2009. I was involved before he passed away, but not to this extent. Losing my dad pushed me further into helping raise money for research. We have to find a way to beat this thing.”