Cancer had touched every person at the eighth annual Snoqualmie Valley Relay for Life, held last Saturday at Centennial Fields in Snoqualmie.

But the more than 300 people at the Relay, the biggest yet in the Valley, willed themselves to bring something positive out of cancer’s negative and raise money for a cancer cure.

“That’s why we’re here today—to celebrate, remember and fight back,” Valley Relay organizer Wendy Thomas told the crowd, kicking off the initial survivor-led lap.

A fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, the local relay met or exceeded nearly all its goals this year.

More than 30 teams took part, raising more than $60,000 for the cause.

After the opening ceremony, 24 hours worth of relays around the field track began.

The lighting of luminarias, decorated paper bags with a candle inside, at dusk, was a memorial to loved ones claimed by cancer.

Groups of people, with teams names such as “Angels of Hope,” “Super Troopers” and “Firecrackers,” camp out together on field. Their all-day, all-night sojourn reflects the fact that cancer never sleeps, either.

Good tears

Robin Walbeck-Forrest of North Bend toted her camera around the field as she visited the luminaria of family and friends. She shed tears when she found a bag she made for her mother during an illness. Her mother died in May.

“It’s mostly good tears,” Walbeck-Forrest said. “You’re crying because you miss the person that’s gone.

“But my overall experience has been positive,” she added. “There’s so many people that are doing so much. It’s good to see. It’s the best part of humanity.”

“You see the little kids. They’re putting their energy and spirit into it,” she said. “Kids know that it’s OK to go on, that they’re not the only ones going through it.”

Cancer survivor Dave Sharpy challenged Relay-goers to keep fighting long after the luminaria fade.

He asked all present to spend an hour each day to make healthy choices, learn about wellness and exercise.

“We make choices every day,” he said. “Fight against cancer in your life, and make a difference in someone else’s.”

Learn more or help the local Relay effort at www.snovalleyrelay.org.