Relay For Life Set for May 3 & 4; Award-Winning Event Looks to Raise More Money to Battle Cancer

March 13, 2003

March 13, 2003, Greencastle, Ind. - Putnam County Relay For Life, which continues to set new records for money raised and participation each year and has won awards in each of the past two years, is aiming even higher this spring. The annual fundraiser that brings together the people of DePauw and Putnam County to raise money to fight cancer is set for May 3-4, 2003 at Blackstock Stadium on the DePauw campus, and 2003 co-chairs Amanda Manning, Tricia Cooksey, Peg Johnson and Keith Brackney have a goal of surpassing last year's total of $127,000, which itself was a 50% increase from what was raised in 2001.

[DOWNLOAD VIDEO: "Off to a Great Start" 514KB] "Our goal is 125 teams, as opposed to the 100 teams that we had last year," says Manning, a DePauw senior. "We've already seen some sponsorship levels increased as well as some new sponsors this year, so automatically we have an increased sponsorship total already."

Putnam County Relay For Life, the oldest college-run Relay in the nation, has seen phenomenal growth. In 1998, the event raised $20,000. The 1999 total of approximately $30,000 was eclipsed by 2000's $42,000. Then, 2001 brought in $80,000, a total that was obliterated by last May's collection of $127,000 for the fight against cancer. Putnam County Relay For Life was awarded the 2002 Heart of Relay Award for the Great Lakes Division, and the year before won the National Heart of Relay Award as the best college or university Relay in the USA (photo below shows Manning and Cooksey, l-r, holding the award).

Planning for the 24-hour marathon is a year-round effort. Relay For Life has become a much anticipated rite of spring; an opportunity for students to get together, have fun, make new friends and help others. [DOWNLOAD VIDEO: "A Campus Highlight" 335KB] "Students look forward to it," Cooksey says. "We tell prospective students... 'Relay is coming up, it's one of the biggest weekends on campus.' We're all really excited, we all have teams.. it really brings the community together."

While the event started as a DePauw fundraiser, it now brings together students and members of the Putnam County community. The co-chairs, DePauw students (Manning and Cooksey) and local business leaders (Brackney of Brackney's Western Store and Johnson of First National Bank of Cloverdale), build an event that not only raises money for an important cause, but brings people together. "I think Relay For Life decreases the whole town-gown stereotype," Manning says. Participants set up tents on the football field where they can rest between laps around the track. "One of the things we're doing this year is assigning campsites, and we're going to mix up the DePauw [students] with the community so we can get more interaction. You see DePauw students walking with community members -- it's just a great time for everyone to come out."

Relay For Life is also a time for people -- individually and collectively -- to make a difference. [DOWNLOAD VIDEO: "My Way" 551KB] "It's my way to fight back. It's my way to do something," Cooksey says. "I'm not a researcher, I don't work in a lab trying to do things, I'm not a doctor in an oncology department or a nurse. It's my way to contribute, my way to think I'm doing something to help the families and friends that have been affected."

If you'd like more information on the event or would like to be a part of it, send an e-mail by clicking here.

You can get a flavor of what Relay For Life is all about in a video created by Chris Newton '85 of DePauw's Pulliam Center for Contemporary Media. Access the clips in this previous story.

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