Salisbury University’s Relay For Life has raised over $1 million for the American Cancer Society (ACS) since 2002.
Dr. Dane Foust, vice president of student affairs, made the surprise announcement at opening ceremonies for SU’s 13th annual Relay, held April 25-26.
“SU students have united this campus with this event over the years,” he said, adding that, in total, more than 12,000 students have participated.
Some 70 teams representing over 1,500 SU students, faculty, staff, families and community members took part in the 2014 Relay, co-chaired by senior Meagan Marziani and junior Amanda VanCleemput.
So far, teams have added over $106,000 to the prior cumulative total of $934,000, bringing SU’s total donations to over $1,040,000 since the event started.
“I’ve worked beside outstanding SU students for many years through Relay, and this year was no different – they are amazingly talented and dedicated,” said Debbie White, ACS community manager. “These are the youth we don’t hear enough about. The ones who commit to a cause and give hundreds of hours of planning and hard work, using skills they’ve not only learned at home but also from their education. These are the youth who care about this community’s future and the future of the world – a world with less cancer and more birthdays.”
SU’s Relay is consistently among the top collegiate Relays in the nation. All proceeds benefit cancer research, education, patient services and advocacy programs.
SU has twice been named one of only 20 “Leaders of Hope” by Colleges Against Cancer, an ACS program that unites more than 300 campuses in the fight against cancer. SU also was named CAC’s “Rookie of the Year” Relay chapter in 2007, and in 2008, the University’s CAC chapter won an Outstanding Advocacy Award, one of only six honors given nationwide. In 2011, the ACS honored SU for “Outstanding Administration Support” of Relay.
The theme for this year’s event was “Hope is Music to Our Ears.” Cancer survivors from campus and the community participated in a survivors lap and reception, sponsored by the SU Foundation, Inc.
Donations are still being accepted. To contribute, visit the SU Relay website: www.relayforlife.org/sumd.
