South St. Pete’s Relay For Life Walk goes on

BY ALLEN BUCHANAN, Staff Writer

ST. PETERSBURG — South St. Petersburg was the only community in Pinellas County to host the Relay For Life Cancer Charity Walk Event during the drenching rains last Fri., May 2. All was dry when the event let out from the Lakewood High School gymnasium Saturday morning.

A community carnival atmosphere was in the air as the Mount Zion Progressive Marching Band kicked off the event with high-stepping youthful energy. As the band filled the space in the middle of the gym, the walls seemed to stretch out around the perimeters as more than 500 people packed into the sports facility.

As flash flood warnings were posted, Chairperson Avis Carter, her committee and many volunteer groups helped ensure that the annual overnight community event went off without a hitch.

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At 9 p.m., candles for cancer victims were lit along the sides of the indoor walkway. As always, it was a solemn moment of reflection on how far cancer research has come, yet a subtle but poignant reminder that we still have a long ways to go to eradicate America’s top cause of death. According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, approximately 7.6 million people die worldwide from cancer.

The resilience of Carter and her committee saw to it that neither heavy rain nor flash floods would dampen the spirit of giving to support families of cancer victims and further research. Kudos to Lakewood High School for opening its door to allow the south side to be the only community out of seven other venues to host the 2014 Relay for Life Walk-A-Thon.