Staff Reports
About 200 people were on hand as the ninth annual Relay for Life of Hope opened its 15-hour campaign Saturday on the historic Hope Town Square.
Guest speaker Randy Ollis, a meteorologist for WISH-TV in Indianapolis, talked about his diagnosis and recovery last year from diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, which was confined to one lymph node and treated with chemotherapy and radiation. Ollis said he was declared cancer-free after 93 days.
Ollis was invited to attend by organizer Jonna Shepherd of Hope, who has been involved with Relay for Life since 2009, two years before she lost her husband, Larry Shepherd, to breast cancer.
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Family members and friends each year participate in Relay for Life as Team Larry, in memory of Larry Shepherd.
The Hope campaign’s goal is $18,000 for this year. Money that’s raised helps the American Cancer Society provide free information and support for people facing the disease today and fund cancer research that will help protect future generations. During Relay For Life events, members of each team take turns walking or running around the track or path.
Relay for Life activities in Hope included a breakfast, fish fry, motorcycle ride, music by the Night Owl Country Band and a luminaria ceremony, with each light representing a life taken by cancer, a survivor of the disease, or support for a person still fighting cancer.
The annual Relay for Life in Columbus will be June 16 at the Donner Park Shelterhouse.
