Canadian Cancer Society Relay For Life Awareness Chair ROLE This position is responsible for two types of awareness: awareness and promotion cancer awareness and education In order to have a successful, all aspects of the need to be promoted throughout your school. From planning the Relay Rally kick off right up to promoting the last minute details, the Awareness Chair needs to get the information out there and visible to everyone! Relay For Life is not just about fundraising. A very important part of the is cancer education and awareness. By incorporating cancer prion facts and awareness into the promotion and running the Cancer Smart Shop during the, the Awareness Chair will be getting the important information out there in a way that will make everyone want to get involved! KEY RESPONSIBILITIES work with the committee to plan the Relay Rally kick off assembly (See Relay Rally Guidelines on the Relay 101 CD) plan and organize all promotions (i.e. posters, banners, signage, awareness s and activities etc.) inform Society Coordinator if any materials are being produced using the Relay or Society logos contact local media to invite them to the promote cancer awareness and risk reduction (e.g. not smoking) to the school community promote information about the Canadian Cancer Society coordinate the Cancer Smart Shop on night work with the Entertainment Chair to incorporate fun, educational activities that involve cancer awareness into the Entertainment and Activities schedule Page 1 of 9
TOOLS FOR SUCCESS These tools are provided (on your Relay 101 CD) to help you coordinate a successful Relay For Life. Relay Rally guidelines Media Tool Kit (including sample Media Release) Sample Awareness Activities Relay For Life Communication CANCER SMART SHOP The Cancer Smart Shop is a mandatory and important part of your. It can be a table, display board or activity area where participants can go to get more information about cancer, risk reduction, our services or the Canadian Cancer Society in general. Design the Cancer Smart Shop so it is easy for people to find information they are looking for. Your Society Coordinator will provide you with an assortment of brochures and information to use and you can always get up to date and reliable information at www.cancer.ca. PROMOTING YOUR EVENT There are lots of ways to promote your Relay For Life! The important thing to remember is to be creative, make it visible and make it stand out! Work with each committee member (teams, survivors, entertainment etc.) to find out what needs to be advertised and come up with ideas on how to get the information out there. Your Society Coordinator will provide you with Relay For Life posters to get you started. Here are a few other suggestions for ways you can get everyone s attention. banners signs or flyers word of mouth announcements bulletin boards or displays post cancer facts around the school skits at assemblies or during lunch hour activities or interactive games that draw people in and create awareness about cancer and your Page 2 of 9
AWARENESS CHAIR TIMELINES Use the following chart to keep track of the important items you need to complete. Please note this is a suggested guideline only and may vary by school. Start 12 weeks before Start brainstorming ways you can create awareness about the. Put together a promotion plan with your committee. 10 weeks before Work with your Relay committee to plan the Relay Rally kick off. See the Relay Rally Guidelines. 8 weeks before Host a Relay Rally kick off assembly. 8 weeks before Promote! Promote! Promote! Have posters and other promotional materials all over the school. Focus on recruiting participants. 7 weeks before Work with the Luminary Chair to start promoting luminary sales at your school. Page 3 of 9
AWARENESS CHAIR TIMELINES - PAGE 2 Start 7 weeks before Do homeroom visits to answer questions about Relay and encourage people to sign up their team. 6 weeks before Work with the Survivor Chair to start promoting the Survivors Reception and Victory Lap. Encourage people to invite those they know who have faced cancer. 5 weeks Plan weekly awareness activities that will focus on different areas of cancer prion (e.g. healthy eating, not smoking, physical activity, etc.). Check out the sample awareness activities available on your Relay 101 CD. **April** 4 weeks before Don t forget April is cancer awareness month! This is a great opportunity to promote what the Canadian Cancer Society does in your community! Start planning the layout or set up of your Cancer Smart Shop. Make weekly announcements, giving students tips on how to reduce their cancer risk! Page 4 of 9
AWARENESS CHAIR TIMELINES - Page 3 Start 4 weeks before 3 weeks before 3 weeks before Using the sample media release, draft a media release to let the local media know about your school s. Work with the Entertainment Chair to include fun cancer awareness activities throughout the schedule. Talk to the Volunteer Chair about how many volunteers you will need to run the Cancer Smart Shop and awareness activities on night. Use quotes from teachers, students or committee members at your school to show how cancer has affected your school community. See the Media Tool Kit for more information. *Talk to your Society Coordinator about who to contact in your community 2 weeks before Send out your media release to local media. 1 week before Put together all supplies needed for the Cancer Smart Shop and the awareness activities. Confirm that you have the space you need booked. Your Society Coordinator will send you an assortment of brochures for your Cancer Smart Shop. Page 5 of 9
AWARENESS CHAIR TIMELINES - Page 4 Start Event week Hold a training session for the Cancer Smart Shop volunteers. Give them a copy of their scheduled shift times. Event week Follow up with local media to confirm your details. Event week Have someone prepared to speak with the media. This should be someone who is comfortable sharing why they are involved in Relay and what it means to your school. Event Day Attend the organizing committee meeting. Event Day Set up the Cancer Smart Shop. Event Day Greet media as they arrive at your. Thank them for coming. Event Day Post Help out in the Cancer Smart Shop or with awareness activities as required. Thank media that attended. Follow up to give them results. Make sure your volunteers are having fun! Post Give any remaining brochures to your school library. Page 6 of 9
AWARENESS CHAIR TIMELINES - PAGE 5 Add any additional action items in the space provided and be sure to update this as you go. Start Page 7 of 9
HELPFUL HINTS Here are some helpful tips and suggestions to keep in mind while you plan for a successful. People need to see or hear something 8 or 9 times before it registers. Promoting your often and using a variety of methods will help ensure everyone gets the information and knows how they can get involved. Your Relay Rally kick off needs to have a strong impact on your school. Make sure people come away from it knowing not only what a great it will be and how much fun they ll have, but the importance of it (celebrating survivors and remembering those lost to cancer) and how it connects to your school. Providing cancer prion information is important! Did you know that 50% of cancers are prable? If we can educate people through s like Relay For Life, we can reduce future cases of cancer! Incorporate other things into your Cancer Smart Shop that will encourage participants to check it out. For example, you can sell luminaries, have games and activity sign up sheets or even contests and prizes. Open the Cancer Smart Shop an hour earlier than the registration time. This way, participants will have a chance to visit and learn more about cancer facts and awareness information! GREAT IDEAS! Every school has a unique Relay For Life. Here are some things that other schools have tried that may work for your school too! Add your own ideas as your committee plans how to make this your school s best ever! Choose a theme and/or theme song for your Relay For Life. Use it throughout all of your promotions. As teams sign up, have them put their names on a paper cut out of a Relay t-shirt. Post t-shirts on the wall so others can see how many of their friends have already signed up! Have a cancer facts bulletin board. Post new information every week. Make a giant thermometer to promote how many teams you have or how close you are to your fundraising goal. Page 8 of 9
Host a pre- head shave. Get popular teachers or students to shave their head to fundraise or draw attention to reaching certain goals. (E.g. when you reach 25 teams or raise a certain amount of money, a teacher agrees to shave his/her head.) Put cut outs of running shoes on lockers of everyone who has signed up. Include the words Relay For Life and your date. Create a video with footage from the school s past s that shows what Relay For Life means to your school and how much fun it is! FINDING INFORMATION ON CANCER It is important that while you are creating materials and displays that you use up to date information. Where can you find this information? Print brochures and pamphlets provided by your Society Coordinator o Note: We send you an assortment of brochures. If you are interested in a specific type of cancer or would like additional information, please ask us! Online at www.cancer.ca o the most up to date, reliable and accurate information on cancer, prion and related statistics. Ask your Society Coordinator. By phone, Canadian Cancer Society Cancer Information Service o 1 888 939-3333 QUESTIONS? Not sure what to do next? Do you have questions about your role or how to complete something? 1. Ask your Staff Advisor for guidance or help. They can probably point you in the right direction! 2. Talk it over with the committee at your next meeting. Others may have some great ideas or input to share. 3. Contact your Canadian Cancer Society Coordinator. We re here to help and support you! You can reach us by calling 1 800 268-8874. Page 9 of 9