Family helps work toward a future without cancer
Couple encourages support of Relay for Life on June 9-10
BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer

JENNIFER KOHLHEPP Allen and Amie Harris and their daughters, Caitlyn, 10, (l) and Alicia, 8, will participate in the upcoming Relay for Life in New Egypt on June 9-10 in honor of Alicia, who is an ovarian cancer survivor.

For Alicia Harris, the Relay for Life means riding ponies, getting her face painted, running as fast as she can and getting the chance to try to stay up all night.

The Harrises won't give their 8-year-old carte blanche to completely run amok at the upcoming overnight, but they will provide her with some extra spending money and allow her room to celebrate. After all, Alicia, who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer when she was just 4 years old and who has now been in remission for 3 1/2 years, deserves it.

Her parents, Amie and Allen, along with her older sister, Caitlyn, 10, and the rest of the family, will use the June 9-10 event at the New Egypt High School track in Plumsted to rejoice a little, too.

The Harrises - who currently live at the McGuire Air Force Base in Wrightstown, where Allen is a combat-skills instructor of the 421st Combat Training Squadron - were based in Washington state when doctors diagnosed Alicia with cancer. As a result, Amie and her daughter had to leave Allen behind, who at the time was stationed on the West Coast, and return to the East Coast so Alicia could receive treatment at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, commonly referred to as CHOP.

Amie and her father, Terry Freeman, of New Egypt, took care of Alicia while she received six months of chemotherapy. The Harris family ultimately moved from the West Coast to Wrightstown to be closer to Amie's family, who have lived in the New Egypt area all their lives.

"My family was involved in the Relay for Life forever - since it started - because it is a community thing, but now we all continue to go every year because it has taken on a bigger meaning for our family," Amie said.

Relay for Life is a fun-filled overnight event designed to bring together those in the community who have been touched by cancer. At the event, participants celebrate survivorship and raise money to help the American Cancer Society in its mission to save lives, assist those who have been touched by cancer and empower individuals to fight back.

"We participate because we don't want other parents to go through what we went through," Amie said. "Unfortunately, money makes things happen, and it's expensive to find cures."

Participants raise money for the event and try to gain sponsors. Thus far, donations for this year's event total $20,775.

During the event, sponsored teams of family and friends walk or run laps around the track. Each team tries to keep at least one team member on the track at all times during the overnight.

"We walk the track 24/7 to represent the 24/7 struggle people touched by cancer go through," Amie said.

"She runs laps," Amie said of Alicia. "I can't believe how long she runs for."

Besides raising funds for cancer research and educational programs, the relay also provides attendees in need of support with information and contacts.

According to Amie, the American Cancer Society offers numerous support tools including group discussions and programs such as "Road to Recovery," which provides transportation to cancer patients both to and from the facilities where they are receiving treatment.

The Harrises appreciate that the relay offers pamphlets on living a healthy lifestyle, which also provide tips on how to prevent cancer.

"There's a lot to educate all family members," Amie said.

Above all else, the Harris family sees the relay as a nice way to help other people and have fun while doing it. Amie and Allen are looking forward to watching their daughters at the dunk tank, seeing other family members croak out a song during karaoke and maybe even trying their own hands at the poker tournament.

"All you can do is think positive," Amie said. "A positive attitude has a lot to do with recovery.

"Enjoy every day of your life," she added, "because you never know when something like this is going to come up and change your world."