Avalon Town

Relay for Life 2013 is well underway and the Knights of Avalon are getting organized for what we hope will be another great year of FUNdraising and good times in our little community. This will be our third year as an organized team although many of us have participated in Relay in one way or another for many years. The scale of Relay in Second Life is massive, drawing participation from thousands of residents from across the grid and around the world, all of whom come together for a common cause: to find a cure for cancer.

In the five and a half years I’ve been a resident of Second Life, cancer has touched me in some way, both in world and out of world. In 2008, a friend and patron of Cetus Gallery District where I worked for two years died after a long fight with this dreaded disease. Just last year, another friend in world, a very young lady who brought many a smile to my face died of a brain tumor that was untreatable. In between their loss, I’ve lost an aunt to cancer and I’ve watched a cousin only a year older than me fight pancreatic cancer and though she is currently winning the battle, it has taken a heavy toll on her. Finally, just today, a friend only a year younger than I am was buried, diagnosed with cancer only four months ago and leaving behind a wife and two young children. Whether we ourselves have suffered from this affliction or not, we are all touched by it sooner or later. This is why I Relay.

Across the grid, there are thousands upon thousands of other stories, stories of struggle and loss but also of victory. Cancer can be beaten and every year we grow a little more knowledgeable about it and we learn new ways to fight it. Someday we will find the key to it and eradicate it once it once and for all but until then, we Relay. Cancer is not discriminating in who it takes. It knows no boundaries of age, race or sex, nor does it care. It strikes the rich and the poor without a second thought and while we may live our lives in ignorance of it, it is not ignorant of us. This is why we Relay.

We Relay to find a cure, we Relay to bring hope, we Relay to support our friends and loved ones and we Relay to remember those that no longer can fight. Relay is an opportunity to play a small role in a large endeavor, to add your voice to a chorus of voices that sing songs of promise and which lifts the light of hope to those whose light is growing dim.

Avalon Town is proud to be a part of this year’s Relay for Life and we would like to invite you to join us for what promises to be a very special year as we celebrate its centennial year with the theme “100 Years of Hope”. Last year, our team created an award-winning exhibit on the Relay for Life track and raised over L$403,000.00 or about $1600.00 US to add to what was raised by teams from all over. We hope to do even better this year but with Relay, it’s not about which team wins or raises the most money…its about everyone winning because we are all part of one very large, organized effort on the part of so many. When we all work together, we can do more and every dollar raised, every person who becomes aware of cancer and cancer research and every life touched is just one step closer to the real prize….finding the cure.

This year, I am proud to serve as Team Captain again and I have not one but two very capable and motivated Co-Captains in Tricia Aferdita and Samara Barzane. Tricia and I have worked on or with Relay in one way or another for a long time and Samara (Sam) introduced me to Relay in Second Life. In addition, we have a team of dedicated volunteers made up of artists, builders, content creators, designers, photographers, writers and just about everything in between. With so much creative talent, the Knights of Avalon Town are certain to do their share towards advancing the message of Relay and giving Hope in many ways.

I encourage you to stop by our Relay Headquarters in downtown Avalon and join our team. We’re located on the third floor of the Kesey Building, pictured to the left, in the Tabula Rasa region. If you would like more information, a group invite or anything else we can help you with, feel free to contact me, Tricia Aferdita or Samara Barzane. We would be glad to have you on our team but don’t feel limited to ours…join ANY team participating in Relay and be a part of something greater than any one of us. Join a team today and be a part of celebrating a 100 years of Relay for Life in the past and a brighter future for tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Ethan Westland, Team Captain
Knights of Avalon

Photos by P.J. Trenton