A closing message for all

“We are continually faced with great opportunities which are brilliantly disguised as unsolvable problems.” – Margaret Mead

People with cancer have often turned their cancer into great opportunities. Many people use their cancer to reach out to others in need and still others find a way to finally let others reach out to them. Very often, cancer changes people for the better even when things couldn’t look much worse.

As you all know, "Cancer" and "great opportunities" are typically not used in the same sentence. Which is exactly why I wanted to highlight this observation by Margaret Mead...because that actually is the perfect way to describe what you see here in front of you today. Our Campbell Relay is made up of 1,000 people AND their families AND their friends who support them. Every single one of those people have turned their experiences with Cancer into something great. While each of you are here for your own personal reason, we all share a common goal. We want a cure!

To the survivors, we stand behind you in your fight and we look up to you for your amazing courage. Know that you have a whole army behind you who is rooting for you to beat this and wants to help you crush it!

To the caregivers, we admire your dedication and are amazed by your selflessness to help people in a way you probably never thought you would. You have been handed the absolute toughest job in the world and even though you might not hear it often enough, you are so very valued and appreciated.

To the future Cancer fighters, we hope you are inspired by the efforts put forth today to continue what has been started by all Relay participants. Every one of us sincerely hopes your generation is the last one touched by Cancer and wants to help you continue our mission.

To all of you who have lost a loved one to Cancer, we hope you find some peace today in knowing that many of us have had similar experiences and want to help you honor their memories. Know that we are all the legacy of those who have fought so bravely yet were still taken so unfairly. They would all want us to help spare others from what they went through and that is what we’re doing today.

To those of you who are here simply because you have the compassion, the empathy and the concern to offer your time and energy to this event, we welcome you with open arms to our crazy Relay family and thank you so much for your support! You are truly a rare breed.

So whether you are here to celebrate a survivor’s triumphs, or to remember a loved one’s battle, or to fight back against this disease you hate, we are honored to have you here and hope today gives you the inspiration to continue this fight.


-- Jodi Hale, Relay For Life of Campbell Sponsorship Chair