RELAY FOR LIFE! GO RED RUBIES!

SO, A COUPLE BLOGS DOWN I EXPLAINED THAT I WOULD SOON BE PARTICIPATING IN THE ANNUAL RELAY FOR LIFE HERE IN POCATELLO AND I WAS ON A TEAM CALLED THE RED RUBIES WHICH WENT ALONG GREAT WITH THE THEME "THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE HOPE." THIS BEING MY 1ST YEAR PARTICIPATING I DIDN'T QUITE KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT. I GOT THERE WITH MY MOM AND SISTER WHO WERE ALSO ON MY TEAM AT ABOUT 5:00 IN THE EVENING LAST NIGHT-IT TOOK PLACE AT DAVIS FIELD, ISU'S TRACK! WHEN WE SHOWED UP ALTHOUGH THE EVENT DIDN'T START UNTIL 6 THERE WAS A TON OF PEOPLE THERE DOING ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING: SETTING UP TENTS, DECORATING THEIR CAMP SPOTS, SIMPLY WALKING AND WAITING, SETTING UP THE STAGE AND SILENT AUCTION, EATING, YOU NAME IT. IT WAS A VERY WARM DAY 87 DEGREES, AT LEAST IT WAS NOT AS HOT AS IT HAD BEEN....AND WE WERE ALL HOPING FOR A COOL DOWN BECAUSE IT WAS HARD TO WALK LONG IN THAT HEAT WITHOUT STOPPING FOR WATER! IT ALL STARTED OUT WITH AN OPENING CEREMONY WHICH INCLUDED INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE EVENT AND ACTIVITIES THAT WOULD LAST ALL NIGHT AND THEN MULTIPLE CANCER SURVIVOR SPEAKERS, SINGING THE NATIONAL ANTHEM AND A PRAYER TO BE WITH US. THE FIRST THING AFTER THAT WAS THE SURVIVOR WALK. ALL THE SURVIVORS WORE PURPLE SHIRTS SO THEY STUCK OUT AND THEY WALKED UNDER THE BALLOON ARCH AND AROUND THE TRACK WITH US CHEERING FOR THEM AND THEIR FAMILIES, CAREGIVERS, FRIENDS, ETC. ANYBODY THAT WAS WITH THEM. AS WE WATCHED THESE PEOPLE WALK, WHEEL IN THEIR WHEELCHAIRS, RUN, DANCE, ETC. IT WAS HARD NOT TO BECOME EMOTIONAL. THERE ARE OH SO MANY PEOPLE WITH THIS DISEASE AND THOSE PEOPLE WERE PROOF THAT SOMETIMES YOU CAN DEFY ODDS AND OVERCOME IT..THAT WAS A GREAT WAY TO START! AFTER THAT WE WALKED AND WALKED AND WALKED. THERE ALWAYS HAS TO BE ONE PERSON FROM YOUR TEAM ON THE TRACK BUT AT FIRST WE WERE ALL MOTIVATED AND EXCITED SO WE WERE ALL OUT THERE. PRETTY SOON, THEY INTRODUCED ALL THE TEAMS ONE BY ONE, HAD TRICK OR TREATING AT EACH TENT, HAD MANY DIFFERENT LOCAL BANDS PLAYING ON THE STAGE, HAD GAMES GOING ON, ETC....IT WAS SO GREAT. ABOUT 9 MANY OF THE ONLOOKERS WERE LEAVING AND WE DID LIGHTING OF THE LUMINARIAS. THESE WERE SOLD TO ANYBODY THAT WANTED TO DECORATE ONE FOR SOMEONE THEY HAVE LOST TO THIS DISEASE. THEY WERE ALL DECORATED AND SOME HAD PIX, POEMS, AND MEMORIES ON THEM AND THAT WAS A TEAR JERKER. AS THEY WERE LIT, THE WHOLE FIELD WAS TO BE QUIET WHILE THEIR NAMES WERE READ AND WE WALKED A COUPLE LAPS ON THE FIELD WHILE ONE LADY SANG "SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW", AND A MAN SANG ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL SONG. THIS IS WHEN IT SET IN...WHAT WE WERE REALLY THERE FOR. MY MOM, SIS, AND I INTERLOCKED ARMS THROUGHOUT THE LIGHTING AND THERE WERE TEARS BEING SHED BY JUST ABOUT EVERYONE IN THE PLACE. THEN FOR THE REST OF THE NIGHT ACTIVITIES, SILENT AUCTION, RAFFLES AND OTHER THINGS TOOK PLACE FOR THE TEAM MEMBERS THAT WERE NOT WALKING TO PARTICIPATE IN. LITTLE DID WE KNOW IN JULY THE TEMPERATURE THAT NIGHT WOULD GET DOWN TO 47 DEGREES. IT WAS STINKING COLD, WE WALKED TO KEEP WARM. WE TRIED TO KEEP POSITIVE BUT WHEN YOU MIX BEING TIRED WITH FREEZING TEMPS AND 3 IN THE MORNING, IT WAS HARD. AT MIDNIGHT, THE CHARLEY'S ANGELS FROM THE BAR (DRAG QUEENS) PERFORMED AND IT WAS AMAZINGLY FUNNY AND THE ACTIVITIES KEPT GOING...FOLLOW THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD AROUND THE TENTS FOR CANDY, DRAG QUEEN DRESSING LIKE THE CHARACTERS IN THE WIZARD OF OZ, LIVE MUSIC, IT WENT ON AND ON. OUR TEAM ENDED UP BEING SMALLER THAN EXPECTED..WE STARTED WITH 11, 3 LEFT ABOUT 10 AND ONE LEFT FOR A FAMILY EMERGENCY! THAT LEFT 7 OF US FOR THE WHOLE NIGHT BUT TO STAY WARM WE HAD TO WALK SO WE WERE BOUND TO TAKE IT ON. ABOUT 430 IT WAS TO MUCH TO HANDLE SO MOM, NIKI, AND I ENDED UP GOING HOME, CAN I JUST SAY ALONG WITH OUR CAPT PAULINE AND US 3, WE WALKED ALMOST THE WHOLE TIME. IT ENDED AT 800 SO WE DIDN'T FEEL TO BAD ABOUT LEAVING AT 5 AM. WE LISTENED TO MANY PEOPLE'S STORIES WITH CANCER..FROM HAIR CUTTING PARTIES TO TAKING SAUSAGE BALLS TO THE CANCER CENTER WHEN THEY WENT FOR TREATMENT. THEY TOUCHED US SO DEEP.THIS YEAR THERE WERE 105 TEAMS WITH AT LEAST 10 ON A TEAM, THAT'S UP QUITE A BIT FROM LAST YR THEY SAID. IT CONTINUES TO GROW AND FOR SUCH A GREAT CAUSE. THERE WERE LIVES CHANGED, MONEY RAISED, AND LOVE FELT ALL OVER THAT FIELD LAST NIGHT, WE ARE ALL FIGHTING FOR THE SAME OUTCOME, GET RID OF CANCER! I WILL NEVER LOOK AT CANCER AS DEATH, BUT AS A FIGHT TO OVERCOME. NEEDLESS TO SAY, IT WAS SO FUN AND IT CHANGED MY LIFE FOREVER! HERE ARE SOME PIX TO ENJOY...

THIS IS PAULINE, OUR TEAM CAPT. AND THE GIRL I WORK WITH! SHE DID SUCH A GREAT JOB IN PUTTING OUR TEAM TOGETHER, SETTING UP FUNDRAISING EVENTS, GOING TO MEETINGS, ETC. THANKS PAULINE FOR MAKING THIS HAPPEN. WE HAD A GREAT TIME AND REALIZE HOW MUCH TIME OF YOURS IT TOOK! WE APPRECIATE IT!

SINCE WE WERE THE RED RUBIES, WE GOT SOCKS TO GO ALONG WITH IT SINCE WE COULDN'T GET RED SHOES AND MY BROTHER-IN-LAW MADE US SHIRTS WITH OUR NAME AND THE RUBY SLIPPERS FROM THE WIZARD OF OZ, THEY EVEN SAID THAT INSIDE OF THEM. GO TROY! WE LOVE OUR SHIRTS AND APPRECIATE ALL THE TIME AND EFFORT YOU PUT INTO MAKING THEM FOR ALL OF US!

JARED AND HALLE CAME FOR A BIT AND DID A LAP FOR THE CAUSE AND THEN HE TOOK HER HOME AND BATHED HERE, GOT HER TO SLEEP AND TOOK CARE OF HER ALL NIGHT. ALSO, SATURDAY HE TOOK CARE OF HER SO I COULD GET SOME SLEEPING IN. THANKS JARED FOR HELPING ME OUT SO I COULD PARTICIPATE IN SOMETHING I WANTED TO DO SO BAD. ALSO, THANKS L & K FOR THE DONATION FOR MY REGISTRATION!THIS IS OUR TEAM-RED RUBIES! POP THE COLLAR! L TO R: IN BACK: MOM, LAURA, MELISSA, KATRINA AND JANFRONT:NIKI, PAULINE, AND I.SOME PEOPLE WERE NOT AROUND FOR THE PICTURE, DARNIT~

HERE WE ARE AGAIN JUST HANGING IN FRONT OF THE TENT WAITING FOR IT TO BEGIN!

THE SURVIVORS! IN A SMALL COMMUNITY IT IS AMAZING THIS MANY PEOPLE EVEN HAVE THE DISEASE, AND THIS ISN'T PROBABLY EVEN 1/8 OF THEM.

THIS IS THE SURVIVOR WALK, GO SURVIVORS-YOU GIVE OTHER'S HOPE!THIS IS ME AND LAURA HENDERSON. SHE IS THE DENTAL ASSISTANT AT MY DENTISTS AND HER HUBBY IS THE ONE THAT WORKS WITH JARED. SHE WAS ON A TEAM FOR HER DENTAL OFFICE AND SO WE GOT TO HANGOUT FOR A BIT. IT WAS SO FUN! SHE IS A TROOPER FOR BEING 8 MONTHS PREGO AND DOING IT-WHAT A GIRL!