College of Saint Elizabeth Relays for Life March 26-27, 2010

Jessica Dunleavy, ’10, is a young woman with a mission. For the third consecutive year, Dunleavy is the College of Saint Elizabeth (CSE) representative for the Relay for Life – The Colleges of Madison Avenue. She has been participating in the event since she was a freshman at CSE, her motivation stemming from a personal loss. Her support of the American Cancer Society comes from the death of her father while she was in high school. The event has helped Dunleavy communicate her experience, she “learned how to talk about it and be more open, because that is how people will understand.”

Relay for Life, hosted by The American Cancer Society, is a team event that helps raise awareness and funds to fight and to prevent cancer. Dunleavy says, “It is an overnight event that is meant to symbolize the fact that cancer never sleeps, so neither will we (sleep) that night.” The Fourth Annual Relay for Life – The Colleges of Madison Avenue hosted by Drew University, begins Friday March 26 and runs through Saturday, March 27, 2010. CSE, 2 Convent Road, Morristown, N.J., Fairleigh Dickinson University, Florham Park, N.J., and Drew University, Madison, N.J., will participate.

The event begins with an opening ceremony welcoming all participants who have raised funds through sponsorships. Later that evening, the Lumineria Ceremony is held, where illuminated bags are placed around the walking track, bearing names of people that have battled cancer. The participants walk around the track in silence to honor and remember those affected by cancer. Throughout the evening, teams raise funds through the sale of merchandise and donate the proceeds to the American Cancer Society. Last year, more than 450 students from the three schools participated in the event and they raised more than $55,000. Dunleavy single handedly raised $2,500 last year. This year’s goal is to raise $60,000 to aid in the fight against cancer.

Sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, Convent Station, New Jersey, the College of Saint Elizabeth enrolls more than 2,100 full- and part-time students in more than 25 undergraduate, 10 graduate and one doctoral degree programs. For information on other activities or programs, visit the College of Saint Elizabeth web site at www.cse.edu.