By JULIE CARLE
BG Independent News
Anna Patnode hopes to harness the wind to raise awareness and funds for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life in Wood County on Friday (May 17).
The 16-year-old Anthony Wayne High School junior planned, designed and built a large wooden structure that will hold upwards of 100 wind chimes honoring individuals impacted by cancer. Anna created the wind chime holder in memory of her grandmother Belle Herner, who passed away from breast cancer in 2002, and in honor of her mother Leah Patnode, who is now a breast cancer survivor.
The project was Anna’s brainchild for her Girl Scout Gold Award. The Gold Award, the most prestigious award the organization bestows on members, is comparable to Eagle Scout. To earn the award, the scouts must complete a project that either helps solve a problem in their community or makes a lasting change in their world.
She planned the project over several months, deciding the best wire to use and making a model of it before constructing the final piece. “She was excited to use the power tools when it came time to work with her father,” her mother said..
By creating the wind chime structure, Anna chose to make a lasting change in the world with her handiwork and her mission to share the Relay for Life experience with classmates and the community, her mother said.
Anna and her younger sister, Mary, have participated in the Relay since they were babies, when their mother Leah pushed them in strollers overnight when the Relay was a 24-hour event. Leah and her sister Kristen Schuchmann formed the Battling for Belle team over 20 years ago when Belle was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer. She lived until 2002, but the team has continued to make a difference year after year, usually raising between $1,000 and $2,000 each year.
One of their main fundraisers each year is a euchre tournament that seems to grow every year. This year they had 28 participants of all ages. Mary was the winner, but the big winner was the Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society.
Wood County Relay for Life theme is ‘Give Cancer a Boot’
The event this year returns to the Pratt Pavilion at the Wood County Fairgrounds for the third consecutive year, said Amanda Barndt, one of the event leaders for Wood County. The theme this year is “Give Cancer a Boot,” she said.
In an effort to encourage more people to stop by and see what the Relay is all about, the event is on a Friday night and has been shortened from 12 hours to 5 ½ hours, Barndt explained. All of the laps, special events, food, games, activities, and team fundraisers will take place between 4:30 and 10 p.m.
“The hours are shorter, but the cause has never been greater,” Barndt said.
The traditional and emotional Survivors’ Lap kicks off the event, immediately followed by the Caregivers’ Lap. Both laps are designed to honor the survivors and those who are part of their support systems.
Other themed activities include the best-decorated cowboy hat contest, the best-decorated stick horse and horse races, theme laps, a scavenger hunt at 8 p.m. the luminaria ceremony at 9 p.m. and the closing ceremony at 9:45 p.m., Barndt said.
The luminaries will be displayed on a magnetized wall, creating a memorial wall. “I’m excited to see how that turns out,” Barndt said.
The family-fun activities include raffles and silent auction (until 8 p.m.), crafts, a bounce house for the kids, dancing and games.
“We are packing a lot of activities into a shorter amount of time. That makes for lots of fun for families,” Barndt said.
Teams share ‘Why (and How) We Relay’
Seventeen teams—including four new ones— are currently registered to participate, said Brian Gibson, senior development manager in the Wood County ACS office.
A week before the event, the county was at nearly $50,000, halfway to their $100,000 goal for this year, he said. “We are trending about where we were last year, “ he said. With the event scheduled early in the year, “we will do fundraising until the very end,” expecting to go ahead of the trend and exceed the goal.
Each of the teams has its own reason for participating and their own means of raising funds.
Mary Hinkelman, executive director of the Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce, stepped up this year as team captain for a Relay team that was started last year by Bethany Eschedor. Eschedor, who passed away in December 2023 after a courageous battle with breast cancer, had agreed to pull together a team last year to honor her Support Squad, a group of local individuals on their own cancer journeys.
She had been in pain, but still persevered throughout the entire event, Hinkelman said. When Barndt asked Hinkelman to consider leading the team in memory of Bethany, Hinkelman said, “If she could do it, why not me? We relay for her and all the others.”
Bethany’s Angels, the team’s name, have a special fundraiser for their team. “I reached out to some of my wonderful community connections, and they came through,” Hinkelman said.
With the support of Mark Cassin, senior vice president and market executive at State Bank and Manny Patel, who owns the Bowling Green Dairy Queen, Bethany’s Angels’ fundraiser is called “Be Silly. Get a Dilly and Become a Milli(onaire).” For a minimum $10 donation, individuals will get a Dilly Bar (donated by DQ), and a chance to become a millionaire.
“In addition to the Dilly Bar, they will be included in a pool for the Mega Millions lottery,” Hinkelman said. “If we win (the lottery), the Cancer Society will get 10% and the pool will split the remaining winnings. We hope to win millions of dollars.”
The Nancy Ullum team, in memory of the long-time Wood Lane Residential Services administrator and advocate, has a history of tremendous support. “I got involved with the team because Nancy hired me, and she meant so much to all of us at Wood Lane Residential,” said team co-leader Jenn Speaker-Parcel.
The team, with 13 registered members, including co-leader Tina Veverka, is currently in first place in team fundraising. They have raised more than $13,000 to date with a major purse fundraiser this year. They also sell “Walking Tacos” and feature a potato bar and candy bar for the kids during the Relay.
“We really try to create awareness all year long, helping to spread the word at free events and promoting it on social media,” Speaker-Parcel said.
Cindy Rossow and Sue Mannin of Wonder Walkers have been involved in the Relay for Life for over 20 years also. The Wood County Hospital retirees, both who are cancer survivors, still raise funds for the event, but have taken on the role of organizing the Survivors and Caregivers Dinner each year. The tickets for the barbecue chicken dinner are presold, and the funds are used to provide the meals to the survivors and their caregivers.
The Wonder Walkers also plan to sell subs and chips to round out their event fundraiser.
“I Relay because there has been way too much cancer,” said Barndt, who also listed off too many relatives and friends who have lost their cancer battles or are still in the fight.
Her team, The Hope Brigade, is comprised of family members, including parents, step-siblings, aunts, uncles, parents, cousins and friends. The team’s reason for participating is, “We Relay to celebrate more birthdays.’”
With a goal of raising $10,000 this year, “bumped up from last year’s $9,000 total,” the team’s fundraiser is a gun raffle, Barndt said. “We will make that goal.” The raffle winner will be drawn early in the event, at 5 p.m., so she and her team members can support the other teams and enjoy the event with her six nieces and nephews, and other relatives. They also will sell drinks as part of their fundraiser at the event.
The Eagleletts, a group associated with the Bowling Green Fraternal Order of Eagles, actively raise funds throughout the year with dinners and a major fundraiser. This year they tried a “Quarter Frenzy,” said Sue Bumpus, team captain. Guests paid a quarter for each (auction) paddle that was used to bid on 90 items that were donated for the auction. “This was our first year, but it was such a success, we’ll do it again and maybe make it an annual event,” Bumpus said.
They have already surpassed their $2,000 goal for the year, she added.
The monthly dinners (except the summer months) are held at the Eagles lodge. The Eagles Aerie matches the money raised at each of the dinners. The team also helps at an admission gate during the National Tractor Pull. For the team’s help, the tractor pullers donate $1,000 for the team’s Relay for Life event.
The Amazing Ambulators plan to sell hot dogs, haystacks, chili and water during the event for their event fundraiser.
“It’s such a good event for the kids, with all the activities geared toward kids,” said Mannin. “It’s such a positive and fun event, and there is a message that cancer is no longer a death sentence.”
“People also need to know what these funds do for the American Cancer Society,” said Rossow. “They are doing research, finding cures, and supporting honoring the people who have beat cancer or who are going through a cancer journey.”
For more information about the event, visit the Wood County Relay for Life website.
