After an action-packed day full of immersive games and other activities in the Kiewit Fitness Center, Creighton University’s Relay for Life generated just over $7,800 in donations with its annual fundraising event for the American Cancer Society last Friday.
Creighton University’s Relay for Life is one of the many international subset groups included in the ACS’s “world’s largest volunteer-based fundraising event.”
Heider College of Business sophomore and Relay for Life Fundraising Chairman Abe Cardinal said the on-campus fundraising event aimed to raise a targeted goal of $10,000 dollars to support the ACS mission, though it had received $4,600 from larger donors prior to the scheduled event in the KFC.
Cardinal said his inspiration to join Relay for Life stemmed from cancer’s impact on him and his family and the personal desire to give back. “Relay for Life promotes an opportunity of hope and awareness toward cancer research and cancer survivors,” Cardinal said.
Over 250 people partook in the festivities in the KFC, and the Relay for Life executive team said they couldn’t have been more pleased with the turn out.
College of Arts and Sciences sophomore and Relay for Life President Hannah Graff said the event on Friday consisted of various basketball tournaments, inflatable obstacle courses, casual volleyball games, guest speakers and other interactive activities amongst the various basketball courts within the gymnasium and surrounding classrooms.
“Relay for Life promotes a great cause and builds a greater sense of community within Creighton for those who have been impacted by loss caused from cancer,” Graff said.
Upon conclusion of the events held in the KFC, various registered attendees attended the sponsored Luminaria service and discounted food and drink at the Crescent Moon.
Communities across the globe have participated in Relay for Life fundraising events for over 36 years and have done so at Creighton University long before the coronavirus interrupted its annual efforts. This was the second year of the event’s return since the begining of the pandemic, and Graff said they are working on growing again.
“It was great to put the event on for another year, and hopefully we’ll see growth in years to come,” Cardinal said.