By Susan Shinn For The Salisbury Post

All over Rowan County, there are teams who raise money for Relay for Life nearly year-round. The Christ United Methodist Church Relay for Life team is one such entity.

On Thursday evening, this enthusiastic group of women hosted a Festival of Tables and Vintage Fashion Show for more than 120 people to benefit Relay for Life. The annual Relay for Life event at the fairground is slated for May 7.

Team members and church members decorated 20 tables, said Kathy Muth, a Christ UMC team member who attends First Baptist Church. Her good friends Mary Jane Pinkston and Ruth Sides, both Christ members, are also on the team, so that’s how she got involved.

Muth is a cancer survivor.

“This is just a very important part of our lives, and helping others with cancer celebrate more birthdays,” she said of fundraising efforts.

Event organizers also remembered those who had lost their battles with cancer, by situating a lovely memory table — with a place setting for one — in the center of the church’s expansive Family Life Center.

The table decorations spanned a pleasing range of simple to more elaborate.

“We brought china from home, and we borrowed from each other,” Muth said. “We just want this to be a special evening for the ladies.”

Making it special was the wait staff of husbands, sons and other men of the church. The prettiest waitress of all was Marion Blake, the daughter of Bob and Deona Blake. Her dad was a server and her mom sat at a table sponsored by her aunt, Tisha Goodwin, longtime Relay chair.

The Sacred Heart third-grader wore a sparkly silver dress while carefully serving glasses of water and tea to diners. Her dad, brother Corey McVay, and the other men were smartly attired in white shirts and dark slacks.

Goodwin noted that this year’s Relay theme is “All Stars.” Her own table bore the “Celebrating Birthdays” theme, with luminaria featuring friends and family who have had cancer.

Goodwin added that this year’s Relay luminaria will include white bags in memory of friends and family who battled cancer, orange bags for caregivers, and a variety of colors for survivors.

“I wanted lots of color this year,” she said.

Nearby, the color for Muth’s table was Tiffany blue. Her tablemates loved the theme “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” They posed happily for photographs, holding black cigarette holders aloft (no cigarettes in them, of course) and sporting black Ray Ban-style sunglasses — just like Audrey Hepburn wore in the 1961 film.

When asked by the Rev. Jill Smith, Christ’s pastor, a handful of ladies stood to signify their cancer survivorship.

“This room is full of people who love you and who are making sure things are being done in the world of cancer research,” she said.

Sides is a survivor.

“It’s humbling,” she said of the support survivors receive at such events. “The way everybody gives to help others is what makes me feel so warm and fuzzy. We can’t fix cancer, but we can help.”

Guest speaker was Dr. Gayle Yatawara. The local gynecologist revealed her six secrets to happiness. (For details, see Yatawara’s facebook page under Yatawara Gynecology, Wellness, and Aesthetics.)

After a delicious meal from caterer Debbie Suggs, the women enjoyed a vintage fashion show from the collection of Alice Thompson.

Freelance writer Susan Shinn lives in Salisbury.