The Garden Grove American Cancer Society will be tying purple ribbons on public trees and light poles Thursday (July 3) to honor all of Garden Grove’s cancer survivors.
The society’s committee will be canvassing a 2-mile area spanning Garden Grove Boulevard, Nutwood, Chapman Avenue and West Street, with ribbons and flyers.
The event will last until July 14, and is also a way to spread the word about the society’s upcoming Relay for Life event in the city.
The Garden Grove American Cancer Society will be tying purple ribbons on public trees and light poles Thursday (July 3) to honor all of Garden Grove’s cancer survivors.
The society’s committee will be canvassing a 2-mile area spanning Garden Grove Boulevard, Nutwood, Chapman Avenue and West Street, with ribbons and flyers.
The event will last until July 14, and is also a way to spread the word about the society’s upcoming Relay for Life event in the city.
This year the relay will take place at Garden Grove High School on July 12. The relay is a 24-hour event starting at 9 am Saturday morning at the high school track.
“It is an incredible family event where we celebrate and honor our Garden Grove cancer survivors,” said Linda Wochner, the relay’s event chair. “This is why we are bringing [the] Relay for Life to the community of Garden Grove.”
Wochner continued speaking on the goal of the event.
“Relay For Life is a life-changing 24 hour event that helps communities across the globe celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and to fight back against this horrible disease.”
The reason for the 24-hour length of the relay is explained in the flyer: “Because cancer never sleeps, relays are overnight events, and each team is asked to have a representative on the track at all times.”
Other cities including Seal Beach and Los Alamitos have painted the town purple in the past in preparation for a relay event in their city.
So far, this year’s Relay for Life event has raised over $9,000 in donations. Last year, the relay raised approximately $24,000 in donations.
The Relay’s inaugural event occurred in 1985 in Tacoma, Wash. Under the leadership of Dr. Gordon Klatt, the relay raised $27,000 in its first year.
