In this issue
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Vote now! VOICES photo and video contest

A celebration of survivorship and birthdays

Young Relayer helps raise more than $12,000 in honor of her brother

Local artist donates ArtPrize entry to American Cancer Society Hope Lodge

Common types of breast cancer

Notre Dame University researchers raise funds and awareness for ACS CAN

Linda Leibe: Health Care Reform is not an option
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Prostate Cancer Quiz

VOICES in the kitchen

Young Relayer helps raise more than $12,000 in honor of her brother
Joanie and Gary Whitford of St. Johns, Michigan, have been participating in their local Relay For Life since its inception in 1996. Their reason to Relay began when their son, Conner, was diagnosed with cancer in 1993. The doctors found a brain tumor at the base of Conner’s brain…he was only 18 months old. At that time, they were able to remove most of the tumor and Conner was treated with follow-up chemotherapy and radiation.

Since his original diagnosis, the tumor came back five more times. Conner walked in the Relay For Life of St. Johns as a survivor for 13 years, alongside his parents and his younger sister, Claire. Even though Conner’s 16-year-old soul was resistant to cancer, his body couldn’t fight the cancer anymore. The cancer returned, and Conner lost has battle in December of last year.

Claire Whitford is not your average 14-year-old. She attended her first Relay For Life as a baby in a stroller, and she hasn’t missed one yet. “For me, Relay is about togetherness,” said Claire. “Everyone is there for the same purpose”. This year, she wanted to do something special to honor her brother’s memory, and with the help of Conner’s good friend, Erin George, formed a team of family and friends called “Conner’s Wings”.

“Relay was really important to me this year, because this is the first year I haven’t been there with my brother” said Claire. What started out as a small team became one of the largest teams at the event.

More than 60 teenagers from St. Johns High School were part of the team and helped raise over $12,000 for the American Cancer Society. Claire didn’t expect the team to be that successful. “Our first goal was to raise $2,000, and then we just kept raising money,” she said.

A tribute concert was held in February that was a celebration of Conner’s life and a fundraiser for the Relay For Life. They took donations for “Conner’s Wings” t-shirts and hand-made memorial ribbons in honor of Conner.  Claire and Erin each individually raised over $2,000.

Conner’s Wings was a team made up of mostly teenagers, who came together to honor Conner and to help find a cure. For these students, it was about so much more than raising money…it was about coming together and feeling empowered. They were celebrating, remembering, and they were fighting back.

Pictured: Above right - Conner Whitford; Top left - "Conner's Wings" RFL Team; Top right - Claire Whitford and Erin George (wearing RFL shirts); Bottom left - Claire and Joanie Whitford; Bottom right - Conner lighting his own luminaria bag with his father, Gary.