By BRIDGET COOK
MORE than 700 people united for a common cause over the weekend at the second annual Cranbourne-Narre Relay for Life.
It was 20 hours of high emotion, remembrance and hope as 29 teams pounded the pavement at EG Allen Oval in Cranbourne to raise awareness about cancer and money for the Cancer Council.
And that they did, with a final fund-raising tally of $63,750 to go towards helping find a cure for the horrid disease that had affected each participant in some way.
The event kicked off at 4pm on Saturday with an official opening by Cranbourne North resident Tracey Ryan, who has terminal cancer.
The relay started with a lap by survivors and carers, with 29 survivors and 102 carers taking part.
At 8.30pm, there was a candlelight ceremony, where people wrote messages on lanterns and then lit them up around the track.
Teams walked until noon on Sunday and then a number of awards were handed out.
Team Clemwards Crowd were the highest fund-raiser with $9750, Team Taralee won an award for best baton and team Feel the Love were awarded best themed site.
The Cranbourne CFA team walked the most laps in total with 455 laps and team Bright Stars were awarded for their spirit.
Cranbourne-Narre Relay for Life chair manager Nicole Ryan said the event was amazing.
“Spirits were high despite the weather,” she said.
“The second Cranbourne-Narre Relay For Life exceeded all my expectations, we had double the amount of participants and survivors taking part.
“When the event finished and the committee cleaned up and left for a well-earned rest, I stood on the oval and cried.
“I didn’t want to leave because it meant it was over and I didn’t want it to end.
“I’m already thinking of next year’s event and what we can do to make it better.”
