By Eleanor Wilson
Camping tents and running shoes were in abundance at Akoonah Park over the weekend, as the Casey Relay For Life participants showed up for those battling cancer.
The 18-hour fundraising event kicked off at 6pm on Friday 3 March, where 500 participants descended on the park track to get their legs moving for a good cause.
It was Casey Relay for Life’s 20th relay event and its first relay event back since the beginning of the Covid pandemic.
Casey Relay For Life chair Donna Harrison said it was a “an incredible community effort and a 20-year celebration to remember”.
“It was fantastic, it went better than expected…it was full of fun, full of emotion,” Mrs Harrison said.
“The passion and dedication from every participant, team captain and committee member was nothing short of inspirational.”
The relay saw teams continuously complete laps of the Akoonah Park track throughout night and day, with some participants proving incredibly dedicated to the cause, like Colin Healey from team Monaz Mates who completed a distance of 60km from midnight to 7am.
The relay has so far raised almost $110,000 for the Cancer Council through the event, ultimately hoping to reach $200,000 when donations close in four weeks’ time.
“We’re doing it for the people that can’t and every step we take, we take with pride and it showed at that event,” Ms Harrison said.
“Just a huge thank you to everyone who supported the event and participated and came down to walk shoulder to shoulder with each other to continue to keep raising that money for cancer research.”
Donations to the 2023 Casey Relay For Life are open for another four weeks.
To donate, head to relayforlife.org.au/event/casey-2023/home
