Last June, Team Dearborn was coming away from an incredible year. We put in a lot of hard work and raised $18,000. Our team was growing and we welcomed new members with open arms. When we learned our final total, we were shocked. Sure, it was close to our rough estimate, but to hear it spoken out loud was another story altogether. When we started to talk about the 2012 Relay, we raised our personal stakes. We looked at our team, felt the surge of confidence that only comes from a truly crazy idea, and bravely told them our next goal.
"$25,000," we said. Jaws dropped, eyes opened wider. And then, because these miraculous friends are exactly as crazy as their team captains, they consented. They got on board. It only took seconds, silent seconds ticking by, for the brainstorming to begin. We had a rough year, touched by too many hospital visits and announcements full of sad news. But cancer can't win. Bad news and setbacks will not beat us. So the time had come to rally and fight back the best way we know how: Relay for Life. We Relay all year long. My favorite thing about any fundraiser we do is talking to people. Meeting survivors and hearing their story, talking to caregivers who never take the credit they deserve, watching parents teach their children what we are doing.
From September until May, I saw Team Dearborn more than I saw many other friends. After a wonderful and busy 24 hours at the Dearborn Relay for Life, our total was over $23,000. We smiled at each other and cheered. We hadn't met our goal, but we had done so much more than that.
Last month we decided to continue. We needed to continue. I remember clearly one of our first meetings after the big $25,000 announcement. Marlene Czerwick, a longtime Team Dearborn member and breast cancer survivor, walked into my house, ready to get to work. "Are we really trying to raise $25,000? I mean, really?" She looked bewildered as I told her that yes, we were--that had not been a joke. It took her a split second to regain her calm composure before she sat down and plugged in her glue gun. "Ok."
Her reaction was not surprising. Marlene and Henry Czerwick embody the spirit of Relay for Life. Walking around their home, traces of the event are everywhere. Marlene's survivor pins and Henry's caregiver pins hang on quilts by the door. A plastic Relay flag sits in an outdoor planter. Marlene's survivor necklaces hang on hangers in her sewing room, counting her 26 years surviving breast cancer. They are present at nearly every team event in the months prior. They come to Relay and set up tents and tables, helping anywhere needed. They walk the survivor lap, cheered on by family and Team Dearborn members. They spend the day fundraising and walking laps. They participate in a tearful lap during the luminaria ceremony. They yell and clap with everyone as totals are announced and trophies are awarded.
But life is not always as kind as my neighbors, the Czerwicks. Marlene suffered from a sudden heart attack in mid-June and never recovered. She passed away days later, leaving us in shock. The world stopped. Unable to do anything else, our team gathered. Minutes after the early morning news, we were sitting with coffee in front of us. I didn't taste it as I drank it, but having a warm cup in my hands and my teammates around me helped the universe feel a little closer to normal. We gathered again that evening, and resolved that we were going to reach our goal. For Marlene, who thought we were crazy but went along for the ride anyway, we were going to reach our goal.
This weekend, we did. Because of the efforts of our team, the support of friends and family, and the endless kindness of strangers, we raised $25,000.
