Relay for Life is the American Cancer Society’s signature fundraising event, tasking its participants all around the country to celebrate survivors, remember those who have lost their lives to the disease and, most especially, to fight back against cancer. The event has been going on for 11 years in Paso Robles and 25 years nationwide.

This year, 44 teams — amounting to roughly 400 participants — took to a makeshift track at River Oaks Hot Springs in Paso Robles, each team committed to have at least one person on the track at all times for 24 hours.

Relay for Life represents the hope that those lost to cancer will never be forgotten, that those who face cancer will have support and that one day cancer will be eliminated, according to the ACS. Moreover, the event raises both awareness and funds for ACS, which will be utilized for cancer research and services for patients facing cancer.

Paso Robles Mayor Duane Picanco thanked the hundreds of Paso Robles Relay participants for their commitment to stamping out cancer, a disease that will be diagnosed in an estimated 1,479,350 people in 2009 alone, according to the ACS.

“None of us are immune to this particular disease,” Picanco told the crowd. “We all know family and friends who have it and who have had it.”

In acknowledgment of the ACS’ mission, the effort of the event’s participants and the dedication of dozens of local volunteers that made the Paso Robles Relay for Life event possible, Picanco offered organizers a proclamation issued by the Paso Robles City Council, which declared Relay for Life to be a “meaningful, worthwhile event.”

First District Supervisor Frank Mecham was also on hand with an offer of appreciation from the county of San Luis Obispo.

“There are two things that I told my kids all through their life, that every morning you need to wake up with two things: hope and purpose; without them, there is nothing else,” he told team members who gathered for Opening Ceremonies. “You provide that hope and you provide the purpose by which we seek the means to address this terrible disease.”

Mecham himself lost both of his parents to cancer; his mother succumbed to the disease just over a year-and-a-half ago. It was in the same spirit of remembrance that other participants were inspired to dedicate themselves to the cause, as daughters walked in memory of their mothers, sisters in honor of their lost brothers and parents for children whose lives were cut short by cancer. And while there are tears shed for those who have passed on, every step taken by participants was strengthened by a hope for a future without the ravages of cancer.

“I lost my mother 21 years ago to a dreadful disease there was no hope for,” said Paso Robles Relay For Life volunteer chairperson Julie Aikenhead. “I have a friend today who has that same disease and for five years he has had hope. That is why we Relay.”

The enduring strength of cancer survivors is also lauded during the event. Each Relay for Life event across the country starts off with a lap by cancer survivors, some of them still immersed in their fight against the disease. At one time, Caroline Mercado of Templeton was given two weeks to live during her second battle against lung cancer, on Saturday she marched at the head of the group of survivors during the first lap in her role as Relay for Life ambassador. She is now a five-year survivor of the disease. Organizer Liberty Lowe praised the bravery and strength of all those, like Mercado, who have fought cancer.

“After watching my mom battle the ups and downs of cancer for almost five years, I have seen that it takes an extraordinary person to battle this evil called cancer,” she said. “With that, each and every survivor is remarkable.”

San Miguel resident Charlotte Holloway has now walked the survivors lap for two years in a row. She has been free of cancer for 18 months.

“It is very emotional, because I think I am totally in-check and then you look around at different people . . .” she trailed off, throwing up her hands in the air to communicate a depth of emotions not expressible in words.

It was Holloway’s struggle with cancer that prompted members of the SLO County Trailblazers, an all-women’s horse riding club, to get involved in Relay for Life.

“She was the inspiration for us having a team last year and then we found out there are more people [in our club who are survivors],” said team captain Alyssa Rigby.

They won a prize for the best decorated campsite in 2008 and were back this year to live up to their reputation. The women of the team transformed their campsite into a façade of an old western saloon, complete with swinging doors. From their home base, team members passed out educational information on cancer and sold items to raise more money for cancer research. Each of the 44 teams involved in Relay undertook a similar “Fight Back” activity.

At the official ACS “Fight Back” booth, volunteer Donna Jones, who lost both of her parents to cancer, was encouraging all participants to pledge to do something this year to fight back against cancer.

“We can eat right, we can exercise, we can not smoke and get whatever tests we need,” Jones listed as some of the ways to fight back. “I think prevention is really the answer.”

In many cases, taking preventative measures against cancer are small changes.

“It’s little baby steps that we can start with little kids,” Jones said.

Perhaps the most significant way that participants of Paso Robles Relay for Life fought back against cancer was by signing up for CPS-3, a groundbreaking, long-term cancer prevention study by the ACS to better understand the lifestyle, behavioral, environmental and genetic factors that cause or prevent cancer and to ultimately eliminate cancer as a major health problem for this and future generations. To date, 42,272 people have been enrolled in the historic study, according to the ACS.

Thanks to the Paso Robles Relay