ERNIE BROWN JR. Let's breathe life into Relevo por la Vida event

Cancer.
That six-letter word that still provokes fear and trepidation in most of us.
Cancer, however, isn't the automatic death sentence it was 50 years ago. Medical and technological advances have helped thousands of people beat the disease.
Those advances have been made possible thanks to fund-raising events such as Relays for Life.
Relay for Life is the American Cancer Society's signature activity. An ACS Web site says the event "offers everyone in a community a chance to participate in the fight against cancer."
The Mahoning Valley already has had several such events this year, and more are planned, including relays at Sebring and Lordstown high schools this summer.
A first
Of particular note, however, is Ohio's first Hispanic Relay for Life, scheduled from 6 p.m. June 20 to 6 p.m. June 21 at Campbell Memorial High School Stadium.
Called Relevo por la Vida (Spanish for Relay for Life), the event seeks to educate the Hispanic community about cancer as well as celebrate those who have survived the disease.
Chairing the event is Rita Lopez of Campbell, a registered nurse. She is assisted by Virginia Hernandez, also of Campbell.
"The response has been very good," Lopez said. "We have 16 or 17 teams so far."
St. Elizabeth Health Center and several other businesses, corporations and civic organizations also are involved in the effort.
Kickoff rally
There was a kickoff dinner rally Tuesday at Organizacion Civica y Cultural Hispana Americana, 3660 Shirley Road, to generate more interest and excitement about the upcoming relay. Speakers came in from Florida for the dinner. One is a cancer survivor; the other speaker discussed what it was like to have lost a wife to cancer, remarry, and later find out that his new wife also had cancer.
Lopez said the Youngstown area was selected by the state to host the first Hispanic relay in Ohio because of the work OCCHA has been doing with the cancer society to promote cancer research and education within the Latino community.
The Relevo por la Vida has been held in other U.S. cities with large Hispanic populations.
Blue Cross Blue Shield says in its May newsletter that Hispanic women are almost twice as likely as whites to be diagnosed with aggressive cervical cancer, a statistic health experts say "underscores the need for better screening programs and earlier detection efforts among minorities."
In the cancer society's "Cancer Facts & amp; Figures for Hispanics" for 2000-01, statistics show that lung cancer is the third most common cancer among Hispanic men and women; prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Hispanic men; and breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Hispanic women.
That kind of information and more will be available at the Relevo por la Vida.
"There will be a lot of music and entertainment," Lopez said. "Felipe Gonzalez will provide music, and the mayor of Campbell will be there. There also will be a variety of ethnic foods and decorations."
How to participate
It is not too late to get a team together to participate, Lopez added. Teams of people camp out at the stadium and take turns walking or running around a track.
Each team is asked to have a representative on the track at all times during the event. Teams solicit donations, can have garage sales or car washes, or develop other ways to raise money in an effort to stamp out cancer. Relays in Warren and Boardman on May 16-17 raised $791,400 for cancer research and other ACS programs.
Volunteers also are needed to help with setup and cleanup.
Lopez said luminaries will be lighted to honor loved ones and family members who died of cancer or who are cancer survivors.
Every one of us probably knows someone who has cancer, had cancer or who died from the disease.
So be generous in your giving, and take the time to head to Campbell to support this worthwhile activity.
ebrown@vindy.com
XFor more information about the Hispanic Relay for Life, contact the ACS at (330) 533-3040 or OCCHA at (330) 781-1808.