UPDATE (Monday, January 26, 2015): Due to anticipated weather, the Relay For Life-Newtown Planning Committee has announced it will postpone the kickoff event to its snow date of Thursday, January 29 (same time and location).

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Are you ready to Relay?

The official free public kickoff rally for the 2015 Newtown Relay For Life is set for Wednesday, January 28, Thursday, January 29, at 6 pm. The event is being hosted by LeReine Frampton at LeReine’s Cuisine, adjacent to the All Star Transportation offices at 31 Pecks Lane.

Event Chairman Christopher Farrington previously announced that the community’s 2015 Relay will be on Saturday, June 13, from 3 pm to midnight, on the Newtown High School track. This marks the first, more streamlined relay that will not extend overnight in the hope of attracting many more participants to the important awareness and fundraising event.

The theme for this year’s Relay is Dr Seuss. Organizers are asking participating teams to plan on decorating their Relay tent site with Seuss-themed accessories, and to consider creating Seuss-themed team costumes or shirts if appropriate.

All Newtown residents are welcome to the kickoff, regardless of whether they plan to participate in the event.

For anyone unfamiliar with Newtown’s Relay, the activity involves teams of people who will pitch tents or pop-ups at the Blue & Gold Stadium, with members of each team taking turns walking around the track. Food, games, and activities provide entertainment and build camaraderie in a family-friendly environment for the entire community

Because it is a team event, individual participants are not required to be there the entire time.

Many moments create the unique Relay experience, including the Survivors Lap, where all attending cancer survivors take the first lap around the track, celebrating their victory over cancer while being cheered on by other participants who line the track.

There will also be a special Newtown survivors’ tent and free reception for survivors and their caregivers happening prior to the main relay event. Caregivers of residents who have lost their battles with cancer are also welcome.

Newtown’s Relay For Life will recognize and celebrate all caregivers who give time, love, and support to their friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers facing cancer.

An emotional Luminarias Ceremony takes place after dark, so the community can remember those who have been lost to cancer, honor people who have fought cancer in the past, and support those whose fight continues.

Candles are lit inside of personalized bags and are placed around the Relay track as glowing tributes to those who have been affected by cancer.

The annual Fight Back Ceremony inspires Relay participants to take action. The Fight Back Ceremony symbolizes the emotional commitment community members can make in the fight against cancer.

The action taken represents what people are willing to do for themselves, for loved ones, and for the community to fight cancer year-round and to commit to saving lives.

The first Relay for Life occurred in May 1985, when Dr Gordy Klatt walked and ran for 24 hours around a track in Tacoma, Wash., ultimately raising $27,000 to help the American Cancer Society.

A year later, 340 supporters joined the overnight event. Since those first steps, the Relay For Life movement has grown into a worldwide phenomenon, raising nearly $5 billion to fight cancer.

To date, Newtown’s ten Relays have helped raise nearly $2.5 million.

For additional information, contact the Newtown Relay planning committee at relayforlifeofnewtown@gmail.com.