Campus Hosts Relay for Life on June 12

Fairmont State University and Pierpont Community & Technical College will host Marion County's Relay for Life, which begins at 6 p.m. June 12. The yearly event aids in the fight against cancer.

Relay for Life is the world's largest movement to end cancer, giving everyone the chance to celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost and fight back against the disease. Community-based Relay for Life events raise funds and awareness to support the American Cancer Society's mission to save lives by helping people stay well and get well, by finding cures and by fighting back.

More than 600 participants have signed up to work with 44 different teams. Dorothy Saunders is organizing this year's relay with some logistical help from former organizers, Bill and Emily Bickerstaff.

In an interview with the Times West Virginian, Bill Bickerstaff said that Relay for Life is a great event for the community to get together and show it cares.

"I think of the words community, sharing, love, hope, celebration and healing. The relay is those words put into action," he told the paper.

The relay will take place on the inner campus from Hunt Haught Hall to lawn in front of the Education Building to Hardway Hall. On relay night, team campsites will line the sidewalks. There will be music in front of the Education Building, with the traditional luminaries on the decorative walls around the building. Part of the route will take walkers through the tunnel by the Ruth Ann Musick Library which will be transformed into the "Tunnel of Hope."

FSU and Pierpont staff, faculty and students have formed teams and support Relay for Life through fund-raising efforts. The women's basketball team recently made a donation that will go toward providing entertainment for kids at the event. Staff members Tiffany Christopher and Lea Ann Anderson are leading a team and have organized several fund-raisers, including raffling baskets and a silent auction.