Lunch in the Lot aims to end cancer

SUPERIOR – The Mineral County Relay for Life teams will band together to bring lunch and refreshments to the community with one overriding goal in mind: to find a cure for cancer.

The annual Lunch in the Lot event is scheduled to take place on Thursday, June 26 from 11:30 to 1:30 p.m. at the Superior High School track and field and aims to raise money for their cause.

According to organizer Peggy Temple, this year four teams will participate, although some more teams may join before the event takes place.

During the event, the Relay for Life teams will set up a table or booth with different food items. The event will provide a variety of different lunch items and this year hamburgers, taco salads, desserts and refreshments will be served.

“They do their fundraising for their team with their food items,” Temple explained.

Each team has their own fundraising goal they hope to achieve. Last year Temple estimated the event brought in between $600-$700, although exact numbers were not available since each team keeps track of the money they have raised.

Typically the event hosts approximately seven teams, so numbers are down from previous years. Temple explained that many of the long-term teams had prior summer commitments and therefore are unable to attend.

“There’s a number of reasons why we don’t have as many teams. It fluctuates each year,” Temple explained.

Despite the decrease in numbers, the hopes for the event remains high.

This year the event was scheduled to take place later in the month, in hopes that good weather will finally grace the teams. For the last four years, inclement weather has hindered the event.

“Hopefully this year it will be warm, sunny and nice and everybody will come out and really enjoy it,” Temple said.

The goal is to raise $3,500 throughout the different fundraising events. This is just one of many that the Relay for Life teams will participate in.

Temple explained that many of the teams have been hard at work, bringing in as much money as possible. One team helped man a rest stop, giving out coffee and cookies for donations, while the quilt guild sold cookies at the Old Schoolhouse Rock Car Show for donations. Another team held a wood raffle for a trailer of wood, while a white elephant sale was also held at the quilt guild meeting.

“There are various ways that all the different teams fundraise,” Temple explained. “It varies a lot on a team by team basis.”

Temple said the Mineral County community has been very generous in the past. The proceeds the teams raise will go to a variety of different causes, all of which relate to finding a cure for cancer or helping those impacted by the disease.

“Relay for Life is part of the American Cancer Society and it really does fund research to help find a cure for cancer and also goes to programs for cancer patients in the county,” Temple said.

Funds will go to Reach for Recovery and Road to Recovery, two programs that help cancer patients.

Reach for Recovery aims to help women during the rehabilitation process after having breast cancer surgeries, while Road to Recovery provides patients with rides to Missoula for treatment, as well as provides lodging options for those who need it.

“There’s a lot of different programs that it also helps fund for the county patients. It’s not only funding national larger roles but local patients and survivors,” Temple said.

The overall goal is clear and all the effort for these events is fueled by the common ideal that one day cancer will be curable.

“The big goal is always the overreaching goal to try to find a cure for cancer, to get rid of (the disease) so we don’t have to do this anymore. We would love that,” Temple said.

Anyone interested can contact Peggy Temple at 822-0922 or Patti Pickering at 822-7425. Interested participants can also go online to www.mineralcountyrelay.org to register online.