The 24-hour event put individual walkers and teams on the grass practice fields behind the Kimball High School from 10 a.m. Saturday, May 19, to 10 a.m. Sunday, May 20.
Walkers raised money, pledged for their time spent on the track.
According to event chair MariAnn Albrecht, the Tracy event had a net fundraising total of $233,000 as of Sunday, May 20, though the final amount raised for the American Cancer Society won’t be known until mid-September.
She said officials of the Tracy Relay still have a goal to bring in a net total of $310,000.
“It doesn’t stop here,” Albrecht said, noting that fundraisers will continue throughout the summer, including a fashion show on July 28 sponsored by Macy’s at the West Valley Mall.
The weekend’s relay began with a lap for those who have beaten and are battling cancer, and they walked dressed in purple shirts. The following lap was dedicated to caregivers and family members of cancer patients, and then the track was opened to all.
This year, instead of the typical dirt or composite track, a path was marked that wound between the team booths and tents set up for the day.
The luminaria ceremony was also changed because of the new venue. Instead of using candles to light bags decorated in memory of those who have died of cancer or are fighting the disease, glow sticks were placed in each bag.
Albrechet said the school district didn’t want open flames sat on a flammable surface, and there was no dirt track or bleachers available at the Kimball practice field.
She said that no decision has been made about the location for the 2013 event, though that should be figured out by the end of the year.
As of Thursday, May 24, the Tracy Relay For Life website listed 997 people participating on 82 teams.
Taylor Farms was the top fundraiser, according to the website, bringing in $34,545. In second place was Team Swenson, with $20,023; and Team MargaRELAYville finished in third with $11,324.
Robin Lopez had brought in $4,915 as an individual, the website reported, while Sandy George raised $3,880 and Steve Holman $3,000.
The website shows the Tracy Relay For Life brought in a gross total of $243,494.
• This story has been updated from a previous version. The original story included incorrect information regarding the luminaria ceremony. The Press regrets the error.
Having a personal attachment to the Relay for Life due to my own experiences, I have attended many Relays.
A friend of mine had participated in the event as a musician and so after reading your comments, I gave him a call to see what he thought about the sound. He told me with great passion that the sound company did a fantastic job and his band was thrilled with how they sounded.
You had to have been on another planet to come to that conclusion and that is a planet that I would not want to visit if they have such poor listening skills.
PS. You might make a good politician, I hear the Chamber of Commerce is looking for a new manager.
Ken Carmassi
The sound was great, the band were totally awesome and there was ZERO squealing and NO hums during any of the bands playing. If you think you can do better, you go right ahead because the only way you get any work here in town is by lying and cheating.
For everyone else, the sound company volunteers thier time and equiptment. They work all day on Friday setting up and are not done with the event until late Sunday. They work hard and plan this event for months in advance and all of it is for NO PAY! This event is to raise money for cancer patients and research so for anyone to complain about the sound, is just insane.