Record breaking fund raising

By Callan Date
AS ALMOST 1000 people gathered last Friday for the Casey-Cardinia Relay for Life at Akoonah Park in Berwick there was an overriding sense of achievement.
A record-breaking $206,464 was raised by the 33 teams who entered the 2007 event – nearly five times more than last year.
The money will go to The Cancer Council Victoria and help in its bid to combat the deadly disease.
Cancer survivors and their carers completed the first lap of the 24-hour relay event and were then joined by their friends and family.
Casey mayor Colin Butler officially opened the event with Cancer Council Professor David Hill lending a hand in cutting the ribbon.
Berwick’s Corrie Rycken, 70, proudly walked the first lap as a cancer survivor and had the support of family and friends in her quest.
“It was very emotional. To have the support of all these people down here is great. It’s very inspiring,” Ms Rycken said.
Both walkers and runners were rewarded throughout the night with massages, food and entertainment – all provided free of charge by local businesses.
Team Jess broke all records as they collected more than $76,000 to be the biggest money raisers in the eight-year history of the event.
Pakenham’s Don Stephens Team came in second with more than $20,000 and The Curators from Emerald raised the third most funds.