Written by senior Grace Schroller
Relay for Life is an event within the Doane University and Saline County communities that brings people together for a greater cause. Preparation for the event is organized throughout the year leading up to the night of Relay. Students across campus serve on committees and are assigned different roles to help prepare for the event. This year's event is Friday, April 10, 2026, at Fuhrer Field House.
People attend Relay to show compassion for those facing unimaginable battles. Some participants, although you may not immediately know it, attend because they carry personal testimonies of loss or survival. Students have experienced the loss of loved ones, family members and friends due to cancer. Each story and lived experience unites them for one purpose: to celebrate, remember, and fundraise for the lives lost while continuing efforts to save others. Members of Doane’s Relay for Life Executive Committee shared why they relay and what the event means to them.
Senior Camdyn Carpenter, Executive Co-Chair, relays because she has witnessed firsthand the impact cancer has on families. During her senior year of high school, she watched her cousins and her best friend navigate life after losing their mothers to cancer.
“Watching the people I love go through that changed me,” Carpenter said. “I can't bring back the people we love, but I can do something to make sure fewer kids have to go through what my cousins and my best friend went through.”
Carpenter shared that being part of Relay has revealed the strength of community in the face of devastating reality. Students, campus organizations, alumni and community members come together to support the mission.
“I lead the Relay for Life at Doane because this fight is personal,” Carpenter said. “I do it for my aunts, for my best friend's mom, for my cousins, and for every family still fighting. I truly believe we can be part of the cure, and I'm going to do my best to do everything I can to get there.”
She emphasized that every fundraiser and event contributes directly to the mission.
“Every event we hold, every dollar we raise, it all goes toward our mission,” Carpenter said. “We do everything in hopes that it creates days for people. It all gets us one step closer to a world where cancer doesn't steal parents from any kid or loved ones ever. Being part of Relay has given me so much hope and reminded me that even in the face of something as tough as cancer, we're not alone in this fight.”
Senior Trenton Johansen, Relay for Life Co-Chair, relays to make a difference in the Crete and Doane community while gaining leadership and management experience. He initially joined Relay to honor his great-grandfather, who passed away from cancer before he was born.
“I hear stories about him from my great-grandmother all the time, and although I never met him, I feel as though Relaying is a great way to honor his memory within my family,” Johnasen said.
As his time at Doane has progressed, he has developed relationships with survivors, patients and caregivers.
“I also Relay to support them, along with the many other Doane faculty, staff, and students who have had any experience with cancer,” he said.
Senior Jules Harlow, Executive Chair of Luminaria, relays because of the impact cancer has had on her family. Her mother is a two-time breast cancer survivor, with her most recent diagnosis occurring in spring 2023. After undergoing a double mastectomy, she has fully recovered.
“Watching my mom fight cancer was so painful, and that’s why Relay means so much to me, because of what we do here at Doane through Relay, a cancer-free future is possible,” Harlow said.
During the previous Relay event, Harlow gave a speech honoring her mother during the survivor and caregiver ceremony.
“It was very difficult but also very rewarding being able to share her story as a survivor, and my story as a caregiver,” she said.
She explained that delivering the speech helped her process the trauma and emotions she experienced during her mother’s treatment and recovery.
Senior Cale Suckstorf, Co-Chair for Campus Recruitment, relays because of his family’s long-standing involvement in cancer fundraising. For nearly nine years, his family has hosted an annual event at Super Saver in Lincoln for Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, a nonprofit organization supporting childhood cancer research.
“To see directly my efforts during those fundraisers has driven me to help others more than most my age at that time, and it continued on as I grew up,” Suckstorf said.
Cancer has also deeply affected his family. He recently lost his grandmother to pancreatic cancer, and multiple relatives have battled melanoma and other forms of the disease.
“Someone battling, caregiving, or being affected by cancer sometimes just needs someone to talk to or a shoulder to lean on, and I want my work with Relay to be that and much more,” Suckstorf said. “Ultimately, I know people need help, and I want to do whatever I can to kick cancer's butt.”
Through shared stories of loss, survival and hope, Relay for Life at Doane continues to unite students and community members. The event is more than a fundraiser, it’s a reminder that no one fights alone.
