People were trickling through the parking lot at the Outpost Mall on Finnie Flat Road Saturday, June 4, to see what all the commotion was about.
There was music blaring, children bouncing and wind whipping at the Relay Rally, an event organized by the Camp Verde Relay for Life, to let people know the group is still in town carrying on its mission to help wipe out cancer.
Event organizer Latahna Fulton said she heard some rumors around town the group dissolved.
“We’re still here,” Fulton said.
They’re here, and they were definitely visible Saturday.
From the Camp Verde Fire District truck raising its ladder high above the scene to the sock-hop music blaring from the DJ’s speakers, a few people were drawn to the rally to check things out.
“I wanted to check out these cars,” visitor James Ruiz said. Ruiz was talking about the handful of classic cars on display from hot rods to low-riders. Even though there was a big car show in Prescott that day, some classic car owners made the trip back up to Camp Verde to help raise money for the relay and in turn the American Cancer Society.
There were also plenty of children using what seemed to be the day’s most popular attraction, a bounce house. A little later, a face painter showed up to practice her art, when visitors weren’t enjoying food or sno-cones instead.
While organizers hoped the turnout could have been a little higher, the event did make money for the cause, according to Fulton.
Relay for Life was founded in 1985 by a doctor in the Pacific Northwest who started walking around a track for 24 hours to draw attention to cancer and how much work still needs to be done to find a cure and help survivors.
Today, groups hold walks in thousands of communities across the nation at the end of a series of fundraisers. Collectively, the Relay for Life is the largest source of donations for the American Cancer Society.
Camp Verde’s group has put together an overnight relay for the last three years, but there isn’t one this year. Organizers are trying to shift the event back to June in the hopes they can move back to Camp Verde High School. The first local relay was held there and drew quite a crowd and plenty of participants.
The group is still looking for people who would like to get involved, whether through helping with logistics, forming a fundraising team or just offering their talents.
The next event is a special dinner to honor cancer survivors set for Saturday, June 18, at the new community center at Rainbow Acres in Camp Verde.
For more information, contact the group at cvrelay@yahoo.com.
