Relay for Life planned in Poland

A luminary ceremony to honor those killed by cancer will be at 10 p.m. Friday.

Staff REPORT

POLAND — The Poland Relay for Life this weekend features a dinner for cancer survivors and a guest immediately after the opening ceremony and survivor lap, which begin at 6 p.m. Friday at Poland Seminary High School.

The event, which will end at 6 p.m. Saturday, has 28 teams of five to 15 people participating, and some 75 cancer survivors are expected, said relay chairman John Whitinger.

He said it is not necessary for cancer survivors to preregister for the dinner, but it is preferred. They can do so by going to the relay Web site, www.relayforlife.org/poland, or calling the American Cancer Society office in Canfield toll-free at (888) 227-6446.

In addition to a free dinner, the cancer survivors will receive a wooden coin, provided by Mary Jan Perdulla, owner of Pioneer Trails Tree Farm in Poland, with “25 Years of Hope” imprinted on it to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Relay for Life, the cancer society’s national signature event. Perdulla, a relay committee chairwoman and team member, said she hopes the coin, which will also have an attached key chain, will raise awareness of annual local Relay for Life events.

Other events Friday include a Heart of Relay auction at 9 p.m. and a luminary ceremony at 10 p.m., at which cancer survivors and others honor those who have died of cancer.

The auction is a Chinese auction but with a twist. He said if a participant’s tickets don’t win the first item they bid on, they get them back and can use them to bid on other items, Whitinger said.

alcorn@vindy.com