It was March 3, 2003. She was eight years old and at a young age, she thought it was nothing more than a common cold. But from her mother’s reaction, she could tell it was more. She had been diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Now, 19 years old and almost nine years into remission, Audrey Carillo, a second year student at California State University, East Bay said she has come out of this experience a stronger person.

“I didn’t look at it as a sickness,” Carillo said. “I didn’t think anything would happen. I stayed positive to get through it.”

Carillo is a part of the CSUEB student committee of 14, which was in charge of planning the Relay For Life event held on campus May 17 and 18.  Relay for Life, sponsored by the American Cancer Society, is a 24-hour event put on to raise money for research, education, advocacy and service for cancer.

The movement began with Dr. Gordy Klatt in 1985 in Tacoma, Wash., when he decided he would walk around a track for 24 hours straight to begin a fight against cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, he raised $27,000 and the following year, over 340 people joined the cause. Now, the event is almost 30 years old and since has raised over $5 billion to fight cancer.

“We uphold our mission that we are a volunteer driven society working towards alleviating the suffering from cancer,” said Kealoha Pomerantz, AMC the staff coordinator. Pomerantz’s job is to provide the volunteers with the materials they need for support and exposure in preparing for the event.

“I always take a step back on the day of the event,” she said. “Each event is unique and I let the volunteers run the event the way the planned.”

CSUEB puts on a major philanthropy event each quarter to integrate the school with the community. Relay For Life was chosen to be the event for the spring quarter and was supported by the Associated Students Inc., Student Life and Leadership team.

Kaila Molzen, the student committee event chair said, “I have always been interested in Relay For Life. I participated last year and really love the cause. My grandfather passed away in November from Lymphoma cancer, I felt I needed to step up and be more involved in this years event.”

The morning of the event started at 7 a.m. when clubs and organizations began to arrive, set up their campsites and decorate their booths. Opening ceremony began at 11a.m. with special acknowledgments, introductions of the committee, the National Anthem, sang by Joe Tolo, and the Survivor’s Lap.

The Survivor’s Lap is the very first lap walked at the event by anyone who has been a caretaker for a cancer patient or anyone who has overcome the disease. It symbolizes their victory over cancer. This year, survivors and caretakers walked the first lap as everyone cheered and clapped their way on.

One of the survivors, Lisa Booker, an employee at CSUEB in the procurement department is responsible for the creation of the East Bay Support Group. Booker, who has only been off treatment for a couple weeks said that Eileen Tarrell, an Administration Support Coordinator at CSUEB, inspired her to organize the group.

“I think it’s important to have support for people going through this process, both patients and caretakers,” said Booker. “We meet about once a month on campus.”

Each team fundraises before the event using whatever methods they can think of. They also continue their efforts during the event by selling treats, water, face painting and henna, offering games and activities to keep the walkers entertained.

The top donor this year was a walking team from the Criminal Justice Department who called themselves: Role Model. Co-captain and department chair, Dawna Komorosky said they decided to fundraise and relay in honor of a friend in the department who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer.

“We did our fundraising the old fashion way,” said Komorosky. “We emailed and talked with friends and family and relied on word of mouth.”

The student committee also planned out an array of entertainment for the 245 participants. Music performances by bands and artists, games like capture the ribbon, sardines and even Tahitian dancing. They also had a theme lap every hour. The first hour after opening ceremonies was New Year’s, then Valentine’s Day and then St. Patrick’s Day and more.

As 8:30 p.m. rolled around, committee members set up for the Luminaria Ceremony. They lined the track with bags decorated in memory of loved ones lost, those who have fought cancer and in honor of those people who are still fighting. It is an emotional and touching ceremony for many who have had any experience with cancer in their lives.

Closing ceremonies began at 9 a.m. the next morning. Each team was awarded for their hard work and dedication towards the cause. “I was really impressed with the amount of people that stayed up walking the whole night,” said Molzen. “We have never seen that many people be up and walking at 6 a.m. It was amazing!”

For the first time at a Relay for Life event at East Bay campus, breakfast was offered for participants. Molzen stated that it went very well. They had juice, bagels, fruit and granola bars for the hungry walkers.

With a $10,000 goal, about $8,300 has been raised so far. And the campus committee has until August to keep collecting as much as they can before handing over the donations to AMC.

Next year marks 10 years into remission for Carillo. “I’m definitely doing something special to celebrate,” she said. “It took a lot of love, hope and faith to get through everything.”

For more information on the East Bay Support Group, contact Corey Gin at [email protected].