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Severna Park Middle School Relay For Life Team Raises $4,800

Eleven teachers and staff at SPMS surpass their goal at raising money for the American Cancer Society's Relay For Life event that starts Friday.

Teachers and staff on the Severna Park Middle School's (SPMS) Relay For Life Team have a lot to be proud of, with a team goal to raise $1,500 for the American Cancer Society, this group of  11 teachers and staff have more than tripled that amount by raising over $4,800.

Amy Hughes, a sixth grade math teacher,  had a personal goal to raise $1,000 and is currently at the $1,125 mark.  She credits co-captain Holly Stratton, also a math teacher, with spearheading the fundraising efforts at the school. 

Stratton said the SPMS team did a variety of fundraisers, such as “Ledo’s Nights” and change jars in their classroom, where students would contribute their leftover lunch money or spare change. 

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Stratton also created an advisory lesson explaining the Relay For Life event to the students. Following the lesson, she devised a contest where paper birthday cakes were sold for $1 and the grade that sold the most cakes won. 

In addition to the fundraiser held throughout the school, the SPMS team requested donations from family and friends. AVID teacher Renee Austin, said in an e-mail:  “This is my first year!!  I sent an email out to all of my family and friends and was surprised at how generous everyone was.”

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The group said they participate in Relay For Life because the fundraiser supports all types of cancer.   Both Hughes and Stratton have personal reasons for doing Relay.  Hughes lost her father approximately 5 years ago to liver cancer. “I think most of us today have been impacted in our lives by someone we know with cancer," said Hughes.

"I feel that walking and raising money is the only power I have against this awful disease.  If I can raise money to fund research and awareness then hopefully less people will go through the awful time my family went through,” she said. 

Stratton has also lost family members and her college softball coach to cancer.  “Personally, I Relay to show my support for the fight against all cancers,” said Stratton in an e-mail.

Relay For Life is a signature fundraiser by the American Cancer Society.  During the Relay, teams of eight to 15 people walk or run around a track overnight while pitching tents and holding fundraisers for the organization.  The theme is “Cancer doesn’t sleep, so why should we?”  

Relay takes on a carnival-like atmosphere with live music, food, entertainment, raffles and more. At  about 9:30 p.m. on Friday, the celebration takes on a more somber turn as the Luminary Ceremony takes place when hundreds of luminaries are lit in honor of those who still battle cancer and in memory of those who have lost the fight. 

After the Luminary Ceremony, Relay continues with more festivities until sun-up on Saturday when the total amount raised for the event is announced. 

The SPMS team will show their Severna Park Pride as they walk around the track at the Arnold/Annapolis Relay For Life, held this year  at the Anne Arundel County Fairgrounds on May 13 and 14.

To come out and support the SPMS team and get more information about Relay For Life, visit http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?fr_id=33305&pg=entry

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