Meet Exec!

Meet the 2017-2018 Relay Exec Chairs!

Relay Chairs:

Caroline Biondo 

Year: Third

Major: Foreign Affairs

Why I Relay: My reasons to Relay (unfortunately) continue to grow. I Relay for Kathy Kleaka, Coach Deb Brown and Sally Kuisel. I want to live in a world where no one has to hear the words, "You have cancer."

Fun Fact: I have 2 fake teeth!

Maggie Low

Year: Fourth

Major: Public Policy and Leadership

Why I Relay: I relay for my Dad, who passed away from colon cancer. I also relay to celebrate, remember, and FIGHT BACK!

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Entertainment Chairs:

Rebecca Richardson

Year: Fourth

Major: Politics

Why I Relay: I Relay so that the words "you have cancer" don't have to be heard ever again. I Relay in honor of Sam Cox and in memory of Brennon Picarella and B.B. Lind.

Fun Fact: I'm allergic to every animal with fur!!!!!

Derek Wu 

Year: Fourth

Major: Chemical Engineer

Why I Relay: I Relay for my father. When he was battling cancer, I saw the toll that battling cancer takes and I Relay so that others can see the hope and support that we provide.

Fun Fact: I have hit a hole in one in real golf!

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First Year Recruitment Chairs:

Bailey Sanders

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Why I Relay: 
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Tamir Abbasi

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Fundraising Chairs:

Anna Cooper

Year: Fourth

Major: Marketing and Management

Why I Relay: For Aunt Caroline, my friends & their families, and for Kendall.

Fun Fact: I've been cage diving with great whites!

Logan Buckstaff

Year: Third
Major: Comm

Why I Relay: For my grandpa, my uncle, and for millions of others who have lost loved ones to cancer
Fun Fact: I lived in London before LA

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Finance and Logistics Chairs:

Laura Duke

Year: Fourth

Major: Math and Econ

Why I Relay:  I Relay to fight with and give strength to cancer patients, family members, friends, and caretakers, to honor those who lost their battle, and to support the survivors.
Fun Fact: My twin sister is the Entertainment Chair for Relay for Life at Syracuse!

Jeewoo Kim

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Food Chairs:

Taylor Hogge

Year: Fourth

Major: Kinesiology

Why I Relay: I relay for the loved ones I've lost, all of those that have been affected by cancer, and for a cure!

Fun Fact: My closet is organized by color

Chelsea Umberger

Year: Fourth

Major: Kinesiology

Why I Relay: In honor of my Grandfather

Fun Fact: I have a freckle in my eye

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Greek Recruitment Chairs:

Sam Brinkley

Year: Third

Major: Commerce

Why I Relay: My brother Hughes

Fun Fact: I enjoy fly fishing and hiking

Noah Kiernan

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Mission and Outreach Chairs:

Katie Carr

Year: Fourth

Major: Global Public Health

Why I Relay: I relay in memory of my mom and so that soon cancer will be a thing of the past!

Fun fact: I love corndogs more than the any person should.

Savannah Draper

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Why I Relay:

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Publicity and Social Media Chairs:

Hannah Hecht

Year: Fourth

Major: Media Studies major & Art History minor

Why I Relay: I relay for my grandma, aunt, and grandfather who have all beaten cancer due to the progress that organizations like the American Cancer Society have made. I want to honor their strength and hope that we can find a cure to have more stories of people who have won the fight to this disease.

Fun fact: When I was in Africa we got charged by a bull elephant and we had to hop in our truck and run for our lives. They are still my favorite animal though and I have upwards of thirty stuffed animal elephants that I don't plan on getting rid of anytime soon.

Rita Cliffton

Year: Fourth

Major: Global Studies and Public Policy

Why I Relay: In memory of my Gammy Joan and in honor of my Dad winning the fight.

Fun Fact: I'm on the Ski Team at UVA and race competitively

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Sponsorship Chairs:

Emily Smith

Year: Fourth

Major: Commerce

Why I Relay: I relay for my grandfather and for more birthdays!

Fun Fact: I've hiked the grand canyon!

Marisa Lombardi

Year: Third

Major: Commerce

Why I Relay: I relay for my cross country coach Mr. Hornish.

Fun Fact: I was born on New Years Eve.

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Team Recruitment Chairs:

Ciana Deveau

Year: Fourth

Major: Biology and French

Why I Relay: I relay in memory of my dad!

Fun Fact: I've been to 49 states! (Just missing North Dakota)

Casey Baker

Year: Fourth

Major: Biomedical Engineering

Why I Relay: Friends, neighbors, teachers

For The Irishman

When cancer first affected my life, I was too young to realize it. I was three years old when my Grandpa Bob passed away from lung cancer at a relatively young age. I was three years old when I lost the person who had taught me to play the piano, who was the reason I knew what the Yankees were, and who had the exact same Irish eyes as I have. I was three years old when I lost the person who was supposed to see my sister and I grow up, who was supposed to take care of my grandmother in her old age, and who was supposed to tell me all about my Irish descendants. But I was just three years old, and I had no idea.

It was years later, when I found my Mom crying downstairs, that I learned about the incredible man I had lost. She had found tapes of my Grandpa Bob’s voice, and we listened and cried for hours while she told me all about the person he had been. I had never seen my mother cry before. That was the first time that I truly understood what cancer could take away.

Since then, I have been confronted by cancer in so many ways. I don’t remember my Grandpa Bob’s funeral, but I vividly remember the funerals of two friends’ fathers who passed away from cancer. And I remember how much cancer affected their lives and the lives of those who loved them. I remember the day my Dad sat me down and told me that his own father, Grandpa Lind, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of skin cancer. I remember visiting my grandparents that same year and seeing for myself the effect that intense cancer treatment had on my grandfather. I remember eating hot dogs with him because it was the only food he could still taste. I remember hugging him harder every time I said goodbye, in fear of it being my last. I remember his smile and his conviction, and I remember the day that the doctors finally told him he was in remission. And lastly, I remember the day the cancer came back.

I remember, and so I Relay.

I Relay in memory of my Grandpa Bob, in celebration of my Meme’s triumph in her battle against non-hodgkins lymphoma (a cancer of the lymphatic system), in honor of my Grandpa Lind, and in hope of a cancer-less future. I Relay for missed times, for missed relationships, for missed hugs and for missed kisses. I Relay for all of my friends who have lost a parent or loved one to this awful disease.

I Relay in the hope of a future in which no one has to say or hear the words, “I have cancer”.

Cancer is an epidemic. This year alone there will be an estimated 1,685,210 new cases diagnosed and nearly 600,000 deaths in the US. Right behind heart disease, cancer is the leading cause of death in the United States. We cannot afford to stand by; we cannot afford to lose the fight. This is not an individual battle, it is a global movement, and we can all contribute. Join a Relay For Life team. Donate. Visit the American Cancer Page to learn more. Just don't be a passerby - step up and do something.

RelayLove,

Stephanie Lind

Fundraising Co-Chair

Fighting for a Fighter

On September 30th, 2006, I jumped out of bed, overflowing with joy, for my older brother’s bar mitzvah would take place that day. It would be a full day of togetherness with family and friends, and a really fun party later that night.

At that point in time, my mom had been fighting breast cancer for over 3 years. The cancer had metastasized to several parts of her body over the course of her battle. Even at the age of 11, I was aware that her sickness was not to be taken lightly.

What I didn’t know at the time was that Mom’s disease had reached its final stage by the time Jake’s bar mitzvah came around. What I didn’t know at the time was that Mom would pass away just six weeks later.

Aside from my young age, there was a very important reason behind my not realizing the late stage of Mom’s cancer on Jake’s bar mitzvah day. 

I vividly remember Mom on this day. I remember how she could not stop beaming with pride, not even for a second, at my brother during the 3-hour prayer services. I remember her excitedly mingling with every single guest (we had a LOT of guests) during the post-services brunch, and wanting to genuinely catch up with each and every one of them. I remember all of my friends and my brother’s friends running up to Mom and her giving them all her famous hugs, because Mom was so warm and made all of our friends feel like her own children. I remember how Mom danced the whole night at the party…I do not think she sat down for even 10 seconds.

This one bar mitzvah day is just a glimpse into the sunshine that Jill Albert was. She never let the physical or emotional affects of cancer keep her from shining with the greatest radiance and the most contagious smile. She never let the anger or sorrow that many cancer patients regularly feel keep her from having only the kindest of hearts. She never let her preoccupations with doctor appointments, chemotherapy, pills, and countless other treatment related responsibilities keep her from being as involved as she could be in her kids’ childhoods and her community.

As I get older, and the years pass, I miss Mom so much. But I also become increasingly in awe of her. I realize more and more every day just how much of a fighter this woman was during such a painful, steeply uphill battle. Even though cancer took her life, I don’t think cancer actually won. I think Mom’s liveliness in the midst of dying reflects a true victory.

I Relay because Mom was a fighter and to honor her memory, I must fight in any way I can. I can easily picture her running every Relay For Life 5K, leading a team in the Relay For Life flag football tournament, enthusiastically pulling that all-nighter at the big Relay For Life event in April. She’d be doing it all, without a doubt. So I do it for her.

RelayLOVE,

Jamie Albert

Fundraising Committee