Dance helps raise cancer awareness

Written by Rob Ketcham

Thursday, 19 February 2009 18:11

In recent times, cancer has been one of the nation’s most common and fatal diseases, affecting nearly every U.S. citizen in some way, either personally or through friends and family.

Yet, when it comes to the battle against cancer, there is one University of Wyoming student organization willing to do whatever it takes to show students and the community that there is still hope.

In their first year on the UW campus, Colleges Against Cancer, led by President Stephanie Johnson, will be sponsoring a free “Jammin’ in the Jungle” dance Saturday night in the Wyoming Union ballroom from 8 to midnight in order to honor cancer survivors, shed light on cancer awareness and recruit new members for the organization.

“Hopefully, this will be a great opportunity for students who either have lost people to cancer or who are currently going through it to come out and have fun and forget about it for awhile,” Johnson said. “I think it will be an awesome chance to have a blast dancing the night away while also learning about cancer.”

In addition to dancing, Johnson said there will be numerous information tables set up by other organizations, some of which include Wyoming Through With Chew, Albany County Tobacco Prevention and Laramie’s Cancer Resource Center.

Also, she added that those in attendance will receive a free shirt, displaying the words “buck cancer” on the front with the Wyoming’s bucking horse and CAC logo on the back.

As a young student organization, Johnson said the CAC has four focuses: advocacy, cancer education, Relay for Life and survivorship.

She said the group accomplishes advocacy by lobbying or writing to members of the Senate about policymaking that revolves around cancer, including their current push to encourage a smoke-free Wyoming.

When it comes to cancer education, Johnson said the organization is basically trying to get the word out about cancer and how to prevent it. She also said the CAC will be hosting the Great American Smoke Out next week in hopes of getting students to throw away tobacco products and raise awareness of lung cancer.

Coming up April 17-18, Johnson said the CAC has been working hard in preparation of putting on UW’s first Relay for Life, an all-night walkathon event at Half Acre that will help raise money and awareness for the battle against cancer.

At the Relay for Life celebration, she said there will be various guest speakers who are cancer survivors as well as fun games, like energy-drink pong. Also, Johnson said they will have a special survivorship dinner, helping fulfill their fourth focus.

The CAC has meetings on the first Thursday of each month, where they participate in various activities within the four focuses.

Johnson said the most important aspect of cancer awareness she is trying to convey is that those afflicted with the disease should never give up.

“Just because you’re diagnosed with cancer, it doesn’t mean it’s the end,” Johnson said. “There’s always hope.”

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