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Decorated bags lined the wall of the John P. Monahan Plaza Thursday evening, each one dedicated to family members and friends who have battled cancer.
Students gathered to honor their loved ones in a mini-luminaria ceremony put on by the St. Thomas chapter of Colleges Against Cancer.
Junior Katie Tubbs, president of the St. Thomas chapter of Colleges Against Cancer, said the luminaria is a time for both internal and external healing.
“It’s part of the healing process,” Tubbs said. “It’s a way to channel your history and your pain with cancer because it’s a difficult process to see a loved one go through that. This is a way to honor them.”
Colleges Against Cancer is a nationwide organization with chapters in colleges across the country dedicated to finding a cure for cancer. Every year the organization, along with the American Cancer Society, puts on Relay for Life, a fundraiser meant to honor the victims and survivors of cancer and help raise money for a cure.
Thursday’s ceremony was a small one; 62 bags were prepared for the luminaria, where participants set up bags and placed a lit candle inside of them to honor those dealing with cancer. The St. Thomas community placed glow sticks inside the bags to represent the lit candles that could be a fire hazard.
Many who attended the ceremony were there to honor someone they knew who suffered from cancer. Junior Mary Holmes lost her 10-year-old cousin to cancer and cares for her grandmother who has been cancer free for 10 years.
“I am here to honor my family members who have fought their battle with cancer and won, and a few who have not,” Holmes said.
Members of Colleges Against Cancer saw Thursday’s mini-luminaria as an opportunity to show students what Relay for Life is all about. Sophomore Andrew Eagan, Colleges Against Cancer’s chair of mission and advocacy, said he hopes the ceremony will encourage more people to participate in Relay for Life.
“It’s part of my job to help create events like this for people on campus who may not be able to go to (Relay for Life) but would still like to participate,” Eagan said. “This was an opportunity we thought would be a good idea before (Relay for Life).”
Sophomore Tess King, who lost her grandmother to lung cancer, appreciated the preview.
“I think (the event) went well. I think it was especially good practice for us as a group,” King said. “I’m super excited for the real thing on April 19.”
Grace Pastoor can be reached at past6138@stthomas.edu.