This is the third in a series of personal stories on ěWhy I Relayî from people whose lives have been touched by cancer. These will run up until the 2009 Rowan County Relay for Life fundraiser on May 1-2.

Wayne Pinkston of Knollwood Drive wrote:
In 1992, I finally went to the doctor after my wife and mom had been urging me to go get a nasty, dark, almost purple-looking mole checked out.
Being a typical man, I thought they were being typical women and making a big deal out of nothing. Well, when Dr. Thompson told me it was Stage 4 melanoma and that he needed to cut out a larger section, I was shocked.
Dr. Thompson removed a fairly large area from my right shoulder and then sent me to Duke Medical Center (tough thing for a Tar Heel fan to do, just kidding). When you hear the ěCî word, your priorities change a lot.
The doctors at Duke said everything looked fine, and in time, I returned pretty much to my old self. Cancer wasnít on my mind much anymore. I had been blessed and life was good.
Then one morning at our church brotherhood breakfast, Tommy Kimball came in with a box with pictures and trophies and some other things, and he began to talk about his son, Todd. Tommy explained that he had died from a form of cancer that had no cure.
Todd was only in his 20s, so young. As I listened to Tommy, I could feel the love he had for his son and the passion Tommy had for Relay for Life and his hope of finding a cure for cancer.
Tommy spoke about how Relay was raising money to help find the cure. I decided I wanted to help so that my children and my grandchildren might not ever have to hear the words, ěYou have cancer.î
Cancer affects everyone. It does not care if you are old, young, black or white.
I formed a small team, mostly family members, and joined Relay for Life. The very first Relay our team was in, a terrible thunderstorm came up as it was getting started and blew tents over at the Rowan County Fairgrounds. Everything was a wreck, and the Relay was rescheduled.
People were disappointed, but that is sort of the way cancer is. You have some good days and some bad days, but you just keeping going.
My wife has finished chemo treatments, and she just started her radiation treatments. Due to all the improvements made in the past years, she is doing better than we expected.
Thanks to everyone for your prayers.
To all you hard-headed guys out there, if you have a mole that looks odd or changes, donít be too proud to go to the doctor. Early detection is the key to saving your life, and if I understand it correctly, they now can save the lives of people with Todd Kimballís form of cancer.
To Tommy Kimball, I thank you for all the hard work you have done and all the money that has been raised and the lives saved because you had a desire to find a cure. Everyone please help support Relay for Life. The cure may save your child or grandchild or possibly even you.
Thanks to the many people who are helping, I believe the cure is in the near future.

Wendy Baskins of Foxcress Drive wrote:
In 2000, my 3-year-old, Stephen Gilmore, who is now 12, was diagnosed with medulloblastoma (brain cancer).
The doctors stated that research had allowed children diagnosed to survive longer and live more productive lives.
Though Stephen continues to struggle with issues related to the damage the chemo and radiation caused, I was told that his side effects are far less than what they could have been if not for research, some funded by the American Cancer Society. That led me to create a team at the Rowan County Department of Social Services.
The workers were open to relaying in honor/memory of Stephen and other survivors at the agency, members of their families and friends. We have been relaying at DSS for nine years now.
Cancer has again hit my family in that three of my five sisters have been diagnosed with breast cancer. That is 50 percent of my parentsí daughters. This has caused a new drive for me to Relay.
My mentor and coworkers were hesitant to participate after they were diagnosed. I then explained to them the positive emotional side of Relaying and that it is OK to celebrate survivorship and remember those who have died because of cancer. That shows that there is a continued need for research and support.
I always refer them to the information and phone lines that are available to survivors and their family and friends for support and information. When my mentor received her lab work and still had questions, I called with her information and received verification from the American Cancer Society’s doctors of what the report said and what it meant in order to help her make treatment decisions.
Finally, why not Relay? For those who have no idea about the event, you have to be there and feel the excitement. From the young to the old, it is fun (even the overnight stays that are sometimes in the rain).
And the food, did I mention the food? The crafts, electric slide, volleyball and flag football, the teams, the captains and the Relay planning team … they are all great. Some have been impacted by cancer and others, well, they are just good-hearted people.
Why not Relay?

Eunice Holt of Salisbury wrote:
Cancer causes us all to pause and wonder why?
As a former educator I watched my students grow stronger academically and knew great things were ahead for them. Then for some, the dreaded word ó cancer ó intervened.
How tragic. Young lives and families affected so greatly. I had to help.
Then the evil disease drew even closer. It started taking my close friends, then my in-laws, then my dad. I Relay because it continues to affect my family, my friends, my church and my community.
I canít cure the disease, but someone can. Therefore, funding is essential. Relay allows me the opportunity of belonging to groups of cancer fighters, beginning with my church several years ago and now sharing with my sisters in our ADK-Mu chapter Sorority.
Our sorority, the ěMuvers,î recently lost a sister, but has five survivors. We continue to build our bond as cancer crusaders.
This group of women educators realizes the importance of not only raising money but also educating ourselves and others on healthy lifestyles and preventive measures.
Thatís why we Relay.
Relay allows me to participate in fundraising activities that take me from an individual giver to a team of dreamers that knows one day cancer can be cured. I bring this hope and dream to a common ground, the Relay for Life rally.
This countywide Relay celebration gives me a sense of community responsibility as we all rally, laugh, cry, celebrate and remember those whose time came before there is a cure. There has to be a cure out there. Together we seek that cure.
Thatís why I Relay.

Contact Kathy Chaffin at 704-797-4249.