Canton's 14th Relay for Life Volunteers Create 24-Hour Party

For Jamie Mitchell, the opening ceremony for Canton Township's 14th Annual Relay for Life at Heritage Park was emotional.

”I’m going to try really hard to do this without crying,” said Mitchell, associate director at the American Cancer Society, about presenting a lifetime achievement award to the woman who organized the first relay in Canton: Deb Zevalkink.

Zevalkink's son is a cancer survivor, she said. After his cancer went into remission, she wanted to give back to cancer research.

She works for Canton Township as the supervisor’s assistant. When someone from the American Cancer Society approached her in 1999 about organizing an event, she ran with it.

“Oh my god, it’s huge!” Zevalkink said about how much the relay has grown. When she first started working at as event chairwoman eight years ago, there were 24 teams. This year, there are 76 teams of about 15 to 20 people each.

During the relay's opening ceremony, Zevalkink's boss, Canton Township Supervisor Phil LaJoy said "Canton Township is very proud to be a supporter of this tremendous event,” LaJoy said. “This is a great day.”

Walkers came prepared with ponchos and umbrellas to ward off intermittent rain. The relay raises money to support the American Cancer Society's outreach work for people with cancer.

The relay’s goal is to have someone from each team walking on the track at all time. In addition, to raise money, the teams have activities planned at their tents, which are set up around the park. Some tents have items for sale, such as food, snacks and T-shirts, while others offer activities such as karaoke.

“We wanted to get involved,” said Toni Wood as she was setting up her booth, “to give back a little bit.” She and her husband Dan organized the booth—a game in which children bought a sucker for 50 cents and got a chance to win a stuffed animal. Wood, a breast cancer survivor, said this is her seventh year participating in the event.

“I started doing this for the township because I’m a painter,” said Sharon Dillenbeck, owner of the D & M Art Studio in Canton. Her mother died of cancer, she said. This is the fifth year Dillenbeck, her employees and students have participated in the relay, Dillenbeck said. Students and teachers affiliated with the studio were painting famous artworks on columns, and people could vote with dollar bills for their favorite painting.

 There were 1,000 registered participants on Saturday morning, said Sarah Cousineau, chairwoman of the Relay for Life and marketing manager of Community Financial Credit Union, which is sponsoring a team. She expects 1,500 over the course of the day, weather permitting.

 “It’s like one big party, for a 24-hour period,” Cousineau said of the event.

Some booths are sponsored by companies, such as Huntington Bank, Jimmy John’s and Wal-Mart. However, some are just organized by families.

“Because cancer has touched our family so much, I thought this was something we could do to give back,” said Shannon Pypa, who was at the relay with her son Bradley. The Pypas were selling caramel corn in hand-shaped bags, to “lend a helping hand.” Pypa, a survivor of cancer as well as her father, has participated in the relay for three years.

The township monitors the weather, Cousineau said, and if thunder and lighting break out, the relay moves inside Summit on the Park. Either way, musical events are planned throughout the day. The closing ceremony takes place at 9 a.m. Sunday morning, following a pancake breakfast.

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