Relay for Life of Riverview surpasses fundraising goal despite less participation

The past few months have been a roller coaster of emotions for Springdale borough resident Jamey Lavelle.

He was diagnosed with throat cancer in April.

Within a few weeks, he was promoted from supervisor to operations manager at Lower Valley Ambulance Service, where he has worked for about 24 years.

Lavelle’s last cancer treatment was July 1, and he was recently deemed cancer-free.

One of the ways he celebrated being a cancer survivor was cutting the ribbon to start Relay for Life of Riverview, a cancer-fighting fundraising effort at Riverside Park in Oakmont on Aug. 7.

“Highs and lows,” Lavelle said of his year so far. “A lot of emotions (with the) love and support and everything else.”

Relay for Life was founded by Dr. Gordy Klatt, a practicing surgeon in Tacoma, Wash., in 1985.

He walked and ran for 24 hours around a track at the University of Puget Sound to help raise awareness and funds for the American Cancer Society. It has since turned into a global fundraising phenomenon.

Volunteers from Oakmont and Verona began organizing their part of Relay in 2000.

Lavelle joined the effort that year in memory of his mother, Gwenn Lavelle, who died of breast cancer in 1999.

His father, Robert, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2017 and his niece, Veanna Pollard, 16, was diagnosed with leukemia in 2019. Her last treatment is set for this coming November.

Lavelle said cancer affects everyone in different ways and encouraged others to be positive.

“Always be thankful for what you have because tomorrow is not guaranteed,” he said.

Lavelle was joined by a bunch of cancer survivors for the ceremonial first lap at relay.

Organizers said they had already raced past their goal of $50,000 with nearly $71,000 collected at that point, and there were still several hours left in the day.

“I could not be more pleased with what this relay has done this year,” said Nancy “Moochie” Donatucci, a cancer survivor and Riverview Relay organizer for at least seven years. “I think it’s just amazing we came back this year (with) not as many teams (yet) stronger than ever.”

A major donation came from a recent dek hockey tournament in Oakmont and Banksville last month. The event was called Hockey for Life and raised $7,700 dollars toward Relay.

Relay was scaled back from previous years with some folks not quite comfortable taking part in large gatherings. There were only a handful of tents in the park and less than 100 people were around for the opening ceremonies.

The survivor dinner was changed to a survivor dessert reception with prepackaged goods.

The 2019 relay was a 12-hour event with 22 teams and hundreds of people participating. It raised more than $70,000.

This year, the time was cut in half and only 14 teams signed up.

Team Malkamania was among those raising funds through gift baskets and other things.

Team captain Joanne Clark of Verona said they have been involved with relay for about six years in memory of her husband, Cy Clark, who died of throat and lung cancer in 2014. He was 53.

“Since he passed, we have a whole bunch of other survivors that have joined the team,” Clark said. “He was well-known for going to the Penguin games. He was the guy who looked like the Hulk.”

The team usually collects about $5,000 through raffles, candy sales and other fundraisers. No goals were set this year.

“This year’s different because it’s different for everybody,” Clark said. “Who knows what we’re going to raise.”

Relay was canceled last year due to covid. Some fundraising efforts continued, but there was no major gathering/relay at the park.

“We were out of practice because we had a few issues putting the tents up,” Clark said about her team’s return to the field. “We were a little rusty. This year is different. We have less teams here. There’s less people attending. It’s a shorter event. Hopefully next year we’ll be back to normal starting for a whole day, starting in the morning all the way through the evening.”

Riverview High School’s cross country team participates in relay as is tradition, according to coach Palma Ostrowski.

She said runners donate $1 per lap and local businesses also sponsor them. They run from start to finish with at least one runner on the track at all times. The team usually raises about $1,500.

“We’ve done this every year since they started,” Ostrowski said. “We’ve done, I think, 1,800 (laps in previous years). They’ll come throughout the day. I’ll probably end up with 20-plus runners (in the relay). Cancer affects everyone. We’ve had kids on our team that have been impacted by it in their immediate families and also their friends. I’ve known people who’ve battled cancer.

“We thought it was a great cause and it’s a team tradition. We do a lot of things that try to promote thinking outside yourself as an athlete and not be so self-centered. We try to do races where the funds go to good causes. We do volunteer work as a team and just promoting general goodness. Not only just good health but positive attitudes and displaying good sportsmanship on and off the field.”

Relay for Life of Riverview marked its 20th year, but it was the first for Nancy Verderber, American Cancer Society Relay for Life staff partner. She had done similar events in Washington, Pa., for decades before coming to Oakmont.

“I’m just so excited that we’re here (and that) people have come,” Verderber said. “Because when you throw a party you want people to show up. It’s just so inspiring to see the survivors leading the way. That’s why I continue to stay involved. Every time I do an opening ceremony, that’s what always gets me.”

Verderber said they were able to add more survivors to their relay contact list, and the hope is to grow the event even more next year.