Join the Fight Against Cancer This Weekend

The fight against cancer may be nothing new, but the latest twist is about to unfold this coming Saturday in Eagle Rock.

At 9 a.m. on April 27, cancer survivors will gather on the Eagle Rock High School track field and run—or walk—the first of numerous laps that hundreds of caregivers and supporters will then keep embarking on in seemingly endless succession for the next 24 hours.

Called “Relay for Life of Eagle Rock,” the overnight event is open to people in all of Northeast L.A. and is sponsored every year by American Cancer Society, said to be the largest non-profit fundraiser in the world. 

“The relay symbolizes the experience of a cancer patient,” said Virginia Escamilla, a Relay For Life committee member and Eagle Rock resident who has been closely involved with the event for many years.

“By the time dusk arrives, bodies become tired and wonder if they can make it through,” she added. “The clock ticks, 1 a.m., 2 a.m., 3 am— the bodies are beat, much like a patient undergoing debilitating therapies—and then the early hours of dawn allow a glimpse of the sun, filling us with hope because we have indeed made it through to another day.”

It’s a moment that sets the tone for the global—and local—fight against cancer.

Click here to join the fight.

And click here to read about the 2011 Relay For Life.