Outstanding success of this event will bring Relay back to Brock in 2010
Jun 16, 2009 - 12:00 PM
Scott Howard
One hundred seventy thousand dollars, and counting.
That's the total amount -- so far -- raised by the fifth annual North Durham Relay for Life, held last Friday and Saturday, June 12 and 13, at the Sunderland fairgrounds.
That truly impressive total trumps last year's results by more than $70,000, when 38 teams participated in the event at the Port Perry fairgrounds. This year, the event's first in Brock Township, 71 teams took part.
"This is the largest relay North Durham has ever had and we wouldn't have been able to do it without all you wonderful people," said Debbie Bath -- a breast cancer survivour who served as co-chair of the event's organizing committee -- at the opening ceremonies.
Those "wonderful people" include participants, sponsors and the more than 200 volunteers who lent their time to the event from the planning stages up until 7 a.m. Saturday .
"The support we received was phenomenal," Ms. Bath said.
For the second straight year, Brock Township council entered a team in the relay.
At Monday night's meeting, Mayor Larry O'Connor -- who started the push to have the event moved to Brock this year -- credited organizers and the community for ensuring the event was a success.
"Every benchmark the organizing committee set was surpassed," Mayor O'Connor said.
"Hopefully, it will come back to Brock next year."
In an interview Tuesday, Kendra Chopcian, the manager of the Durham unit of the Canadian Cancer Society, confirmed that the event will return to Sunderland next June.
"It's already been decided," she said, adding that Brock could prove to be the permanent home of the event should community support continue.
Ms Chopcian could barely contain her enthusiasm when commenting on the success of the local relay.
"It was fabulous, absolutely wonderful," she said.
"This was our fifth year and was our strongest showing by far. It was great to see how Brock Township really pulled together and came out in full force. That's what the relay all about. The community taking up the fight against cancer."
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