Ogunquit News
Wall of Hope banner to travel from Maine to Washington, D.C.
The local Wall of Hope banner will be on view as part of Celebration on the Hill 2006 to raise awareness of the need to fight cancer as a nation in Washington, D.C., next week.
Courtesy photo
OGUNQUIT - Adorned with thousands of signatures and messages of support from volunteers at the Relay for Life of York County, held in June at Wells Elementary School, the local Wall of Hope is set to travel to the Celebration on the Hill next week.
The Cancer Care Center of York County and Southern Maine Medical Center are co-sponsors of the local Wall of Hope banner, which will join approximately 5,000 others from across the nation as part of a temporary national monument to cancer patients, survivors and loved ones on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., during Celebration on the Hill 2006.
The event, hosted by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, will take place on Sept. 19 and 20.
All over the United States, Relay for Life event participants were invited to sign banners and write messages to their Congressional delegates urging support of an initiative to make cancer funding a national priority.
The Wall of Hope monument will be the equivalent of four city blocks in size and would span nine miles in length if the banners were placed end to end. At the conclusion of the Celebration on the Hill 2006, each banner will return to its home community, where it will be displayed as a visual reminder that those lost to cancer will never be forgotten, that those who face cancer will always be supported and that one day cancer will be eliminated as a major public health threat.
A total of 15 individuals chosen to represent Maine will be attending the Celebration on the Hill 2006, including community leaders, survivors, caregivers, health professionals, cancer researchers and volunteers.
For more information, visit www.acscan.org.
