Written by Cianna Jay // Photo Macy Cox
Twenty teams competed in the Relay for Life sand volleyball tournament on Sept. 24. Each team paid a fee of $30 to participate as part of a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. Members of the winning team each received a water bottle and a $25 gift card to the Harding Bookstore, which sponsored this event. The winning team was Beebe Caps, which consisted of freshmen Joshua Schmidtlein and Luke Kingbury, sophomores Elly Harper and Jon David Mills, and juniors Max Guyer and Lindsey Hollis., Guyer said he and his teammates frequently play volleyball together and that this was a perfect opportunity to do what they love while supporting a good cause.
“It was a really fun experience,” Guyer said. “It was also super encouraging to see how many people donated and participated.”
One of the teams this year, The Faculty Team, included all faculty members. One of these members was President Mike Williams, who said he decided to play in the tournament because “Relay for Life is a tremendous cause.”
“I want to lock arms with students doing great things,” Williams said. “It was fun. The students were great. I’m thankful that they did not openly mock us.”
The student directors, seniors Mason Adams and Kaitlyn Rigsby, facilitate Relay for Life’s executive committee of students and work closely with organizations and social club service directors. Rigsby said this is the second year Relay for Life has hosted the tournament and one of its primary functions is raising awareness so students will begin asking questions about what Relay for Life is, who it benefits and its impact on campus.
“The volleyball tournament was kind of just a kickstart event to get people’s attention about the overall event, which will happen in a few weeks,” Rigsby said. “The point of that was to just raise some extra money, really just to have fun, but also bringing awareness.”
Rigsby said the event was a success, as the number of participating teams significantly increased from the 13 teams that played last year, and they raised $3,300 of their overall goal of $20,000.
This year’s Relay for Life theme is “for a world with more birthday parties” and will be held on Oct. 14 from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. on the Front Lawn.
