Local Weekend Relay for Life All-Nighter Raises $37,431
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Perry County volunteers and residents, including many cancer survivors, are now taking a well deserved rest after walking throughout the night as part of the American Cancer Society Relay For Life celebration at Perry County Fairgrounds in Pinckneyville, Ill.
More than 200 people participated in the overnight event, which raised more than $37,431 for the fight against cancer. Participants included more than 12 teams, 32 survivors, and the lighting of more than 247 luminaria to honor loved ones.
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, more than 62,400 Illinois residents will be diagnosed with cancer this year and more than 25,600 will die from the disease.
Relay For Life of Perry County helps support programs that help people get well. This includes the American Cancer Society's Patient Navigation Services, which offers a place where cancer patients and their families can meet face-to-face with a social worker to discuss questions and concerns about diagnosis including subjects such as insurance support, clinical trials, financial assistance, family counseling and treatment. Other area programs Relay helps make possible include Road to Recovery, a program that provides cancer patients with transportation to and from treatments;Look Good…Feel Better®, which walks women through make-up and hair tips to help them cope with the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatments; Wig Banks, which offer free wigs, turbans and head wear; and Support for Recovery, which matches newly diagnosed patients with cancer survivors to help them cope with their diagnosis, treatment and recovery. If you missed Relay For Life, and would still like to make a donation, there's still time to give. And, while next year's event may seem a long way off now, it's never too early to sign up your team or to contact ACS if you would like to help with planning. To sign up a team or for more information about Relay For Life of Perry County, contact the American Cancer Society at 1.800.998.9898 option #3 or visit www.relayforlife.org/perryil.