Camaraderie shines at relay event
Amajor fundraising event for the Cancer Society is Relay for Life, which has the motto ‘‘Celebrate, remember, fight back’’.
All of those elements were on show on the Wellington waterfront over the weekend as 85 teams comprising well over 3500 registered participants walked and ran through the night.
Pledges were still coming in but it was expected the total amount raised would top $300,000.
It was sobering to see the number of young people wearing the red sash denoting someone who was undergoing treatment for cancer, and there were plenty of tears at the Saturday evening ceremony in which scores of paper bags glowing with candles and decorated with memories, photographs and messages to loved ones battling the disease, or lost to it, were placed in rows.
Michael Smith, Cancer Society Wellington chief executive, said the turnout of high school students was particularly pleasing.
The more than 20 college teams included large numbers of students from Hutt International Boys School, St Patrick’s Silverstream and Town, Heretaunga College, St Bernard’s, Sacred Heart, St Oran’s, Chilton St James and Hutt Valley High School, and their relay sprints chasing fastest, and the most, lap times and their camaraderie was an inspiration.
‘‘They do add so much energy to the event,’’ Smith said.
Particularly impressive was the combined St Patrick’s Silverstream and Town Team. Running as Team Schnick and his Brothers, they racked up the highest number of total laps of the circuit – 520, for a total distance covered of 291 kilometres.
Hot on their heels were the HIBS boys, who put in 512 laps.
Young Hutt Valley athlete Victoria Taylor ran as a team of one, and completed 197 laps of the 560 metre circuit.
It was the 13th Relay for Life in Wellington.