Relay for Life 2011 Attracts Hundreds, Raises Thousands

Knox College welcomed more than 500 participants in the 2011 Relay for Life of Knox County, which was held July 22-23 on the Knox campus. The annual communitywide event raises funds for cancer research and celebrates cancer survivors.

By the time 2011 Relay for Life ended the morning of July 23, about $129,000 had been raised, said event co-chair Anne Giffey, who works in Knox College's Henry M. Seymour Library. Additional Relay for Life fundraising events are scheduled for August.

Knox has hosted Relay for Life for 16 consecutive years. Giffey said the college plays a key role in the event's success.

"From my experience on the Relay committee, I can say that the event could not happen without the hard work of many, many Knox offices, including facilities services, food service, campus safety and the human resources department, just to name a few. We are extremely grateful for all the support that the Knox faculty, staff and students provide."

Participants in the overnight event took turns walking a one-third-mile course through the Knox campus. Other highlights included live bands, displays and a luminaria ceremony.

Knox graduate Kara Downin '02, wearing an orange shirt and sunglasses, and her friends set up a tent at the 2011 Knox County Relay for Life 2011 (above left). Rodney Main fills paper bags with sand and a candle that will be lit during the luminaria ceremony (above right).

Entertainment at the Relay for Life included musicians and the Abingdon High School cheerleading squad (above right).

As part of the Relay for Life opening ceremony, cancer survivors -- many of them wearing purple shirts, -- walked the course through the Knox campus (below, top two photos). Others joined them later. Relay for Life participants also held a luminaria ceremony during the evening (below, bottom two photos).

Founded in 1837, Knox is a national liberal arts college in Galesburg, Illinois, with students from 48 states and 51 countries. Knox's "Old Main" is a National Historic Landmark and the only building remaining from the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates.

Photos by Lotte Vonk '13, Peter Bailley '74 and Adriana Colindres