68° and Partly cloudy
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This is the weekend that a large group from Clifton has been working tirelessly for, the night of Clifton-Rutherford Relay for Life. A look back in time will tell you that Clifton has long been involved with Relay for Life, one of the fundraisers for the American Cancer Society. A number of teams existed and had friendly competitions against one another. Team names listed dating back from the early 2000s:
Walking with Angels
PartyLite Keepers of the Light
My Angels
PCCC Relay
The Fact Patrol
The Cure Army
SassySurvivors
Outlaw Cancer
Team Ice
The EGGS
Minds in Motion
Step Team
Reuniting for a Cure
Got Hope
Keystone Hawks
All Night for the Fight
Red Hat Angels
Book for a Cure
Soul Sisters
Gary’s Giants
Fundraising events in the past have included asking restaurants for a portion of the proceeds for sales for one night when customers mentioned Relay for Life, as well as benefit breakfasts; participants included, again not limited to, Applebee’s, Chipotle, Wendy’s, and Uno Pizzeria and Grill. Other fun events included bowling, or “striking out cancer”, ice cream socials, even cookbooks featuring recipes from Clifton’s home cooks.
Clifton volunteers have been hard at work “Painting the Town Purple” - Purple is said to be uplifting, encouraging creativity and calming the mind and nerves. It has long been used by the American Cancer Society as its signature Relay color. Purple ribbons and bows festoon the trees around City Hall and lawn signs are placed around town advertising the “main event,” held at Rutherford Tryon Park this Saturday, May 13 from 4 to 11:00 PM. A timetable follows; of course all events are subject to change:
Registration Opens at 4:00 PM. Registration is free and donations are welcome.
Opening Ceremony 6:00 PM
Survivor Lap 6:20 PM
Mayors Speak 6:30 PM, Frank Nunziato (Rutherford) and Raymond Grabowski (Clifton)
Survivor Dinner 7:00 PM
Activities for children including games and a scavenger hunt
Between 7-9 BATMAN IS COMING!!!
Caregiver speaker 8:30 PM
Luminaria ceremony, lap 10:00 PM
Fight Back 10:30 PM
Closing Ceremony 11:00 PM
Food and drink will be available during the evening and the weather is expected to be warm and clear (and we all know that is also subject to change! The event will be held, rain or shine.) Luminarias are available for purchase the day of the event for $10.
From the American Cancer Society, following are some of the signs and symptoms to be vigilant about, and to address with your doctor if they don’t improve within a few weeks:
- Fatigue or extreme tiredness that doesn’t get better with rest.
- Weight loss or gain of 10 pounds or more for no known reason
- Eating problems such as not feeling hungry, trouble swallowing, belly pain, or nausea and vomiting
- Swelling or lumps anywhere in the body
- Thickening or lump in the breast or other part of the body
- Pain, especially new or with no known reason, that doesn’t go away or gets worse
- Skin changes such as a lump that bleeds or turns scaly, a new mole or a change in a mole, a sore that does not heal, or a yellowish color to the skin or eyes (jaundice).
- Cough or hoarseness that does not go away
- Unusual bleeding or bruising for no known reason
- Change in bowel habits, such as constipation or diarrhea, that doesn’t go away or a change in how your stools look
- Bladder changes such as pain when passing urine, blood in the urine or needing to pass urine more or less often
- Fever or nights sweats
- Headaches
- Vision or hearing problems
- Mouth changes such as sores, bleeding, pain, or numbness
On behalf of your Clifton-Rutherford Relay for Life team, thank you for your support, good wishes, and thank you for all your generous donations. Please consider joining a Relay team or starting one of your own. Feel free to contact us via Facebook for more information.
