Lions, Tigers and Cancer, Goodbye! Many groups and participants of this years Relay For Life, hosted by the American Cancer Society, donned attire and team names reflecting the theme: Wizard of Oz: There’s No Place Like Hope.

From 6 p.m. Friday night to 6 a.m. Saturday morning students, professors and community members walked the concourse of the McLeod Center to fight for a cure against cancer.

At the opening ceremony, cancer survivors in attendance walked the first few laps around the concourse, then the rest of the participants joined in the night’s festivities.

Participants who wished to sign up as a team registered before Relay’s events on Friday and raised money to be donated to cancer research.

Throughout the night, various donation opportunities were available; proceeds of the night went towards finding a cure for cancer. 

At the closing ceremony, Relay organizers announced how much money was donated and raised, which totaled in $62,398.53.

At Relay, ongoing activities such as Jumbo Jenga and Checkers, a photo booth, four-sqaure, bean bag toss and a silent auction helped keep participants busy in addition to different challenges and games at every half-hour of the night.

“I want to help people and [the] community to fight cancer. I love to get involved on campus, especially to these unique events such as Relay for Life,” said Jacquelyn Knustrom, sophomore communicative disorders major. 

One of the highlighted activities for the night was the Mr. Relay pageant. Students who wished to participate in the Mr. Relay pageant had to sign up before the night’s events and were informed about a set of three challenges they would have to partake in. 

Austin Hanson, junior comunication major, won the Mr. Relay pageant and was awarded a trophy.

Luminarias were on sale for $5 for participants to buy, decorate and later light up around the concourse. At 8:30, the Luminaria Ceremony took place at the main stage, led by a faculty member and a UNI alumna, sharing their struggles with cancer. 

Soon after, Relay organizers had participants light up their Luminarias; all participants were invited to walk laps in memory of those who lost their lives to cancer. 

“I have loved people who have passed away because of cancer. I found this as an opportunity to support people and [the] fight against cancer,” said Allison Eckhoff, senior early childhood and elementary education major.

“I tried to engage with different organizations in the community, I found that Relay for Life is a good event to attend and participate in to support cancer survivors and caregivers,” said Mary Chicoine, junior financial management and real estate double major.

-Staff Writer Fatimah Alrubh contributed to this article.