There is a special reason why the Beauties and the Beasts team have selected their moniker for Wagga’s Relay for Life.
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The group has chosen the name in honour of Wagga woman Tammy Taylor, who died earlier this year from breast cancer. She was just 30.
Beauty and the Beast was Tammy’s favourite movie.
Tammy had some additional needs and the Beauties and the Beasts team was started by a group of about half a dozen of her former disability support workers, but now numbers about 20 as the Taylor family has decided to take part too.
Team captain Karen Salabert said Tammy had made a big and lasting impression on the people who knew her.
“She was always smiling,” Ms Salabert said.
“She never let her cancer bring her down.”
Ms Salabert said Tammy had remained cheerful even when undergoing cancer treatment.
While the Beauties and the Beasts are “Relaying” for Tammy, Ms Salabert has a second, more personal, reason to take part: Her grandmother died of breast cancer.
The countdown to Wagga’s Relay For Life has well and truly started, as the massive fundraiser will be held on Saturday and Sunday, October 13 and 14, at Conolly Park.
Wagga man Alan Pottie, who was treated for tonsil cancer in 2010, has been “Relaying” since 2012 and he has been named Global Hero of Hope by the American Cancer Society, one of only six in NSW.
“People trust Cancer Council because it’s been around for so long and they know the money goes to a good cause,” he said.
“The cause is also one that is close to people’s hearts.”
With Relay now in its 16th year, more than 1000 participants are expected to take to the track and show their support for those who are fighting cancer, celebrate those who have survived and raise funds in the hope that their loved ones won’t have to battle cancer in the future.
So many people in our community are touched by cancer, whether it’s themselves or a loved one, there’s very few people that haven’t had someone they cared for to be effected by cancer.
- Emma McAuley, Cancer Council NSW
“We have great team captains and local businesses that are once again driving the support for Wagga Relay For Life, not to mention a dedicated organising committee that have been pulling everything together over the last few months,” Emma McAuley from Cancer Council NSW said.
Mrs McAuley said Wagga produced one of the biggest Relay For Life events in the country, with participants showing great support for the long-running community event, but even more support for those in the local community that have been effected by cancer.
“So many people in our community are touched by cancer, whether it’s themselves or a loved one. There’s very few people that haven’t had someone they cared for to be effected by cancer,” she said.
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“While survival rates are improving for those that are diagnosed, we still lose too many people to this horrible disease. Anyone who has lost someone to cancer knows that one person is too many.
“And it’s not only about the people that we lose, but how a diagnosis can impact whole families, Relay for Life is a chance to recognise the struggle that so many people and their carers go through and know that they’re not in it alone.”
Wagga Relay for Life registrations are open right up until the day of the event. Anyone interested in getting involved can register on the day by simply going to Conolly Park and heading to the registration tent.
Registrations cost $20 per person and include a relay shirt and access to fun and entertainment.
For more, visit www.relayforlife.org.au/wagga.