Before I started college, I knew that I wanted to join an club that had something to do with cancer whether that was participating in Love Your Melon or another organization. During our campus organization fair I instantly found the Colleges Against Cancer booth and connected with the president and vice president of the club. They told me were personally impacted by cancer and that is when I knew it was a club I wanted to be apart of. My dad is currently in remission for stage 4 Colon Cancer and means the world to me. Nine months later and it is Relay weekend! Colleges Against Cancer hosts our on campus Relay For Life in our main gym. Even though I had help plan the event, I was still very shocked at the final result. I knew going in what it looked like on paper, but seeing it in person was very cool. Throughout the night there was multiple events such as a hulu hoop contest, who could run the fastest mile/obstacle course, pieing PSE members in the face and so much more. It was very heartwarming to see all the organizations come together and support such a great cause! With so much going on, the night flew by and before I knew it the event was over. My favorite part of the night was walking around the track once all of the luminaria's were lit up and the lights were off. Below is a picture of the luminaria I made in honor of my father and grandma Nanci and in memory of my grandma Mary.
Sophomore year was a difficult year that brought many changes. Of course during the time, school seemed very difficult and I was often stressed. When my dad told me he had Colon cancer I didn't know what to do. I was speechless. You look around and see other people who are effected by cancer, but you never grow up thinking that you will be impacted directly. Unfortunately, my worse dream came true. Two years later and my dad has kicked cancers butt and is currently in remission. I learned a lot about myself and my family within those two years. First, I realized how important my dad means to me and how scared I was to lose him. Watching my dad go through chemotherapy was very scary and upsetting to watch. You want to help the ones you love, but in this situation I couldn't do anything but should him how much I loved him and was there to support him. Secondly, how important it is to show the ones you care about how much you love them and appreciate them. My dad has told me that telling me he had cancer was one of the hardest things he has every had to do. Listening to him tell me this was very difficult. At the time, I had no idea how serious the cancer was or how long he had. Even though my heart had dropped into my stomach when he told me this, I had to put my feelings and doubts aside and tell him that everything was going to be alright. Lastly, I realized that even though my family was divorced that everyone still supported him fully and wished for nothing but the best. I think that when you grow up with divorced parents you begin to have two separate lives and they rarely interact with each other, but this was an exception. Everyone came together as if we were still one big family and showed nothing but support for my dad during chemotherapy. I am so grateful to say that my dad is in remission and I hope and pray to God that he stays in remission forever. Relay For Life is an amazing event and I am so glad that events like this exist to raise awareness for all types of cancers. Now that Relay For Life: 2017 is over, I absolutely cannot wait for next year to plan another walk, raise money, and participate with my friends and family.