LAKE STEVENS — Shop windows in this city are going purple.
The paint, streamers and other purple decorations are all a sign of the Paint The Town Purple event set for Saturday.
“It’s like purple Christmas this week,” said Kim Demary, Relay for Life of Lake Stevens event chair. “You turn your head and then more purple pops up.”
The kick-off to this year’s Relay for Life of Lake Stevens is scheduled to start with a pancake breakfast at the Lake Stevens Community Center at 7:30 a.m. The second annual Purple Siege, a race styled after the television show “The Amazing Race,” is set to begin at 9 a.m.
The race is planned to take participants throughout the city as they complete different tasks and find secret items, Demary said. At least seven teams so far have signed up for the race. Registration is $10 per person and $30 for a family team of up to five people.
New to this year’s event is a Bark for Life noncompetitive walk for dogs and their owners. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. at North Cove Park and costs $20. The walk begins at 10 a.m.
“Our pets suffer cancer or are our companions in health and healing,” Demary said. “We’d like to honor them and do something special for them.”
Everything raised during the Paint The Town Purple event goes toward the American Cancer Society Relay for Life, Demary added. Money from items sold during a fundraising craft show beginning at 10 a.m. at North Cove Park will also benefit Relay for Life.
Relay for Life of Lake Stevens held its inaugural event last year. The relay event raised $155,000 and was named the National Rookie Relay of the Year. So far, 520 people are part of 65 teams formed to participated in the 24-hour event scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on May 19 at Lake Stevens High School. The relay committee’s goal this year is to reach 80 registered teams and raise $172,000, Demary said.
This year’s event has another first planned, Demary added. Mukilteo couple Julie and Adam Bogart, who plan to celebrate their 16th wedding anniversary on May 25, are set to renew their wedding vows during the relay.
Julie Bogart wrote an essay about her husband’s fight against colon cancer and submitted it to a contest for a chance to have the ceremony during the relay event.
“It’s going to be awesome to say I do again,” she said. “I can’t wait until we can be out there walking the track.”
Anyone can come and see what Relay for Life of Lake Stevens is about on May 19, Demary added.
“Our huge message right now is if you don’t want to sign up for a team and you just want to see it, come,” she said. “It’s all about awareness for us.”
Amy Daybert: 425-339-3491; adaybert@heraldnet.com.
Register for Relay for Life
To register in advance for Saturday’s Paint The Town Purple events or to learn more about Relay For Life of Lake Stevens, scheduled May 19 at Lake Stevens High School, go to www.relayforlife.org and search “Lake Stevens.”
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