Somewhere in the auditorium, a young girl cried.
One by one, a voice punctuated the silence as students, faculty and others spoke aloud the names of loved ones affected by breast cancer.
Some 175 participants kicked off the seventh annual Lake Orion Schools Dragon GAP & Lady Dragons ‘Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Two-Mile Charity Walk’ gathered in the Lake Orion High School auditorium last Friday to celebrate cancer survivors, memorialize cancer victims and hear from inspirational speakers.
Orion Township Clerk Penny Shults was on hand to talk with the students, and Principal Sophia Lafayette addressed the group, as well.
“Most of us, at some point, will know someone who is affected,” Lafayette said. “I never knew anyone who had breast cancer – I knew it was an important issue, but I never thought much about it. Until recently.”
She went on to tell the crowd, made up mostly of female high school athletes – otherwise known in Lake Orion as ‘Lady Dragons’ – of a good friend who was diagnosed with the disease shortly after her 50th birthday.
GAP Coordinator Ben Gerdeman, who organized the event, introduced Edel Boughner, a LOCS staff member, a survivor who talked about her fight against breast cancer.
The goal of the event, said Gerdeman, was to raise money for and bring awareness to breast cancer in the community.
Participants also listened to “Angel (for Kathy),” a song written and recorded for Kathy Luby by Oakview Science teacher Carl Zoolkoski.
Luby, a Lake Orion Community Schools’ teacher, died March 5, 2008 at the age of 40 after a long struggle with breast cancer.
The assembly was followed by a two-mile walk through Round Tree Subdivision, and concluded back at LOHS with pizza and beverages.
Students solicited donations and raised about $500 for the American Cancer Society.